Korg Poly800/EX800 Users

--- In korgpolyex@yahoogroups.com, "korgpolyex800" <korgpolyex800@...> 
wrote:
>
>> 
> While in the US, did you ever write or phone your congressman?
> 
> The reason I ask is because absolutely every single person that I've
> spoken to that has held similar sentiments as you hold has NEVER
> called or written their congressman. It's all whining, complaining and
> pontificating repeating the current liberal talking points but NEVER
> active involvement in the political process. Someone once said,
> Democracy is not a spectator sport.
>

Well since we're already off topic!...

I think that writing your congressman or other elected-official is a 
waste of time, unless you're writing a letter expousing a position your 
recipient already agrees with, in which case he or she may send copies 
of the letter to the media as means to demonstrate his or her support 
among the voters.  Congressmen and other elected officials do not sit 
around in their offices wondering what position they should support, 
just waiting for someone to write them a letter telling them what to 
do.  They come to politics heavy with ideology and they work in 
politics for the purpose of advancing that ideology.  If it's really 
important to you to have some influence in govt, you'd be far more 
influential getting a position as a paid advisor to a politician than 
you would writing a jillion letters. Or run in an election yourself, 
and take the piss out of your competition in debates.  Even becoming a 
journalist, who can slant and bias articles the way you want, would be 
more effective than sending a letter to a politician to be filed in the 
circular filing cabinet. 

Democracy is probably the best system available, but that does not mean 
it's a great system.  By its very nature it must pander to the lowest 
common denominator (watching political tv commercials around election 
time in democratic countries demonstrates that much), and I think that 
recognizing that is of chief importance to those who seek to protect 
and bolster democracy.  Holding it up as a gold standard that can do no 
wrong and must be forced upon every non-democractic population in the 
world in order to save them from dictatorial boogeymen only serves to 
weaken democracy's usefulness and popularity.  Don't get me wrong, I 
supported both of the recent middle-east wars, until they were won and 
became occupations with bringing wonderous democracy to the defeated 
used as an excuse to keep pushing them around ad infinitum...