We are so busy - we have more to do to keep up and make ends meet than ever before. Most people have fallen into the habit of either not voting or else voting without knowing who or what they are voting for. They then feel like they've done their government/political homework and they can move on to more important things.
This works pretty well, locally and nationally, when not much is going on. When there are big problems though and we aren't paying attention - then we probably aren't going to be happy with the results.
So, who's minding the political store for us? Do we need citizen watchdog groups? Can we get more citizens involved in the political process? The clergy is unhappy when people just show up on Easter Sunday. We elected officials are unhappy when people just show up for the annual education budget.
In Derby we're reeling from the tax and sewer usage increases this year. What happened? Did the system of local government fail us? Or were we just not paying attention?
It would be great if we could start a dialogue about this.
Great blog!!!! Great analogy about the clergy!!
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