You know when I vote for a politician to get into office I vote because I believe they may make a difference and Believe that they will do what is best for the people. How Naive I am.
Most politicians nowadays don't serve the people, they serve the Party they belong too which isn't the same thing. If it were I think there would be alot more cross aisle cooperation. I maybe Naive here but its what I believe. Also it is not exclusive to one party or the other, both are guilty though the Republicans do have alot more examples of it.
Party Line Voting does not serve the people! To vote on a matter the same as the rest of your group without consulting the people is well irresponsible of our elected officials. When I say people I do mean people and not companies or lobbyists.
Party Line voting may show unity of a party but again its showboating alot of times and it provides an opportunity for a politician to avoid taking a hard look at the issue to see if how they vote will truely serve the people in the long run, not the short run. A very good example is the current political environment in Wisconsin. The Republican reps there are going to vote for the bill regardless of whats in it because our Republican Govenor put the bill together and heaven forbid they go against him. Should they do that their GOP backers may pull out or worse Walker will target them for some form of Backlash. He would do it too.
People pick on the Wisconsin 14 saying they aren't doing their job and are avoiding the situation. Thats quite the opposite. These 14 by far are showing more backbone than most of the Democrats in office have shown in ages. They are facing potential political ruin when all is said and done. They are doing this because they are serving the people. They are slowing down the process so there can be discussion, so the things hidden in the Bill can be negotiated or removed entirely. They are doing it so democracy can actually be practiced.
There is supposed to be debate, there are supposed to be questions, there is supposed to be a dialog between two sides that can come to an agreement that will best serve all the people.
The stance that Govenor Walker has taken is "Well as long as you agree with me, then I am open to discussion." That is not democracy.
Yes they have the majority because more people voted for them. There is also the fact that special interest groups were able to stuff buckets full of cash in their pockets to basically buy an election and hence buy the politician and his vote. Should he actually stray from the path they want him on they will not support him in the next election.
Some would say, the groups didn't pay people to vote for the republicans, the people chose it themselves. I would have to disagree with that. I will use Star Trek as an example. Before you laugh stay with me a moment.
In one episode Picard was captured and held hostage. During his ordeal he had four lights in front of him yet his captor told him there were five. This involved alot of yelling and yes some torture. This continues for days and days before Picard was rescued but at the end of the episode he admits he saw five lights.
Now while the Republicans did not torture the people. They did yell, and yell and yell and saturated every possible media with their "vote for me, I am for you" message and the like. They were able to Yell a lot louder and a Lot more often than the democrats because the Republicans had a hell of a lot more money to saturate all forms of media with their message. Repition was the key. Since they were able to put their message everywhere and often it soon got people to believe what they were saying was true, whether it really was or not. They continued to bombard us with their message and they were able to convince many people there were 5 lights, in other words, that they were for us. Thats how they gained the majority.
Does this mean we agree with everything their party represents, no not at all because people weren't voting for the party , well I hope they weren't again I am probably being Naive, they were voting for the person who they thought was for the people. Unfortunately the person being voted into office took it as "Hey the people are voting for our party we can do whatever our party wants us to do without question." That's not democracy.
These are just my thoughts.
You know again here I am trying to talk politics. Sorry. I did that at work today and I did not present my case the best. Slap my hand Jim and Jill.