The Coming Decision and the Importance of Being Heard
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(NOTE: Have you mailed your 2006 IBT election ballot yet? If you’re a Teamster and you haven’t, click here for more information.)
If you’re registered to vote, the chance to have your say in the future of your town, your state and your nation is only two days away. If you’re not registered to vote, why not?
Have you bought into the hopelessness and apathy of those who complain about what’s going on in the world today, subsequently throwing their hands in the air while burying their heads in the sand? Do you not understand that the privilege of being a citizen in a democracy relies on the obligation of being a citizen?
If that last sentence didn’t make sense to you, perhaps I can explain it. Being a citizen in a democracy is both a privilege and an obligation; enjoying the privilege demands exercise of the obligation. Or to put it more bluntly:
And the stakes are as big as ever, especially for the working class Americans.
This Tuesday, we’ll all have the opportunity to decide whether we think hardworking Americans deserve a higher minimum wage, or if we think people struggling to earn a living at Wal-Mart already make too much.
This Tuesday, we’ll get to send people to Congress who believe the Bush Administration’s Labor Board was wrong in the dozens of decisions they’ve made that strip workers of their basic protections; or we’ll get to send people who think the rights (and ever-increasing profit margins) of CEO’s are more important than whether or not their employees get to associate freely and decide for themselves on whether to join a union or not.
This Tuesday, we get to send a message about the way the country is being run, whether we think trampling the Constitution in security’s name is right or wrong.
This Tuesday, we get to decide. But only if we bother to vote. Only if we care enough to get involved in the choice of who will represent us, whether it be in town hall, the state house or Congress. If you’re registered, it’s up to you. If you’re not, you’ve missed the opportunity this time around, but you still need to register for next time - because the stakes will still be high next year (and especially in 2008).
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