Hear No, See No ....

Surely, in our own minds, we are beginning to say, "This is not working for me". Something needs to be done. And though it may be easier to simply send a check in the mail and hope that some official organization will do the work for you, it's not enough. I've said before, becoming an informed citizen is a necessary goal. But becoming a citizen first and making your voice heard is the foundation of everything to follow.


If you are among the many - far too many- in this country who would prefer just to remain silent and therefore invisible (or you fear you don't actually know enough to qualify for an opinion or the right to complain), then you should realize that everyone has the right to make themselves heard to those that represent us. As for knowing enough, you only need to know what's distressing you, and then let somebody who represents you know all about it. In any situation, (but especially in making yourself heard), it's worth repeating: "I am not as helpless as some would like me to believe." And then prove it!

Here are a couple of tools to help you do that:

Who Is My Representative.Com
(Not sure who your representative is? Put in your zip and get all the contact info for your representatives in Washington. Gives you the latest news, bills in the works, and many other good resources.)

Congress.Org
(The same with this site, but it's not limited to Congress. With your zip code you can find your elected officials for all federal, state, and local governments. It also gives you access to legislative news, bills, etc..)


There are plenty of similar websites and resources available with a simple web search, but I like these.

But let's not forget that we would also like to become informed citizens. One of my pet peeves is how we've handed over all of our reasoning and critical thinking skills to interpreters. People who are supposed authorities or "in-the-know" that we allow to tell us what things mean. This occurs in news, academics, religion, and especially government. I call them middle-men, situated squarely between the facts and our opinions. My question is: Why do we need them? Do we think ourselves to be so incapable of looking at the facts and making up our own minds? I, for one, am not trusting enough of anyone to allow them to make up my mind for me. And with good reason.

Jefferson's Wolves and Sheep

Thomas Jefferson was, likewise, not so trusting. He believed strongly in the rights of free speech and a free press (and at least having access to the truth). It was no accident that this was the First Amendment to the Constitution. But rather than tell you how he felt, I'll let him do that:

I am persuaded myself that the good sense of the people will always be found to be the best army. They may be led astray for a moment, but will soon correct themselves. The people are the only censors of their governors; and even their errors will tend to keep these to the true principles of their institution.

... The basis of our government being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right;
and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without government, I should not hesitate for a moment to prefer the latter.

I am convinced that those societies (as the Indians) which live without government, enjoy in their general mass an infinitely greater degree of happiness than those who live under European{-style} governments. Among the former, public opinion is in the place of law, and restrains morals as powerfully as laws ever did anywhere. Among the latter, under pretense, they have divided their nations into two classes, wolves and sheep.

Cherish, therefore, the spirit of our people, and keep alive their attention. Do not be too severe upon their errors, but reclaim them by enlightening them. If once they become inattentive to the public affairs, you and I, and Congress and Assemblies, judges and governors, shall all become wolves.

He summed up with:

It seems to be the law of our general nature, in spite of individual exceptions; and experience declares that man is the only animal which devours his own kind; for I can apply no milder term to the governments of Europe, and to the general prey of the rich on the poor.

This was written by Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Edward Carrington, a Virginia statesman, in 1787. (You can find that letter here . Or do your own search. I found many sites with copies.) I think Jefferson would be chagrined to find that, more than two hundred years later, the "governments of Europe" in his letter have now become the governments of the nation he helped birth.

Perhaps now you are beginning to understand how things could have gone so wrong, and why "This is not working for me". Jefferson foresaw the dangers of citizens who become "inattentive to public affairs" . Those who govern become "wolves". And in place of "those who govern", we can insert anyone in the upper levels of the hierarchy who, held unaccountable, unwatched and unchecked, simply become the wolves. There is no better argument for becoming an informed citizen.

It also makes the case for the importance of making your voice heard. Let those who would rather you remain silent know what you think is unacceptable, intolerable, or just plain BS. Tell them they are being watched and will be held accountable for their actions .... as well as their inactions. We are not as helpless as some would like us to believe.

In my next post I'll discuss some ways to cut through the clutter in our attempts to become informed. I'll also give you some helpful ways to determine the actual news from that which is simply rhetoric or noise to distract you, so that you can use your own good judgement (that Jefferson so strongly believed in) to make up your own mind. Your comments and voice are welcome. -JW

Whaddya' Gonna' Do ?

In my initial post I spoke about the changes I've witnessed in my lifetime. About opportunities once available to Americans that are no longer there. And while I didn't go into depth about the incredible shrinking wage, the rising costs of education (and everything else), and the crippling debt we now must take on to make up the difference, it's only because we all know these things and discuss them regularly. We don't need another story telling us what's wrong. What we do need are some answers for how these things happened and why.

But with answers seemingly on the endangered species list, we are mostly resigned to a shrug and a "whaddya' gonna' do?". I suppose that's understandable. It seems it's always been this way, and always will be. Especially with the endless media blitzkrieg of fear and anxiety, and your basic car wreck. "It sells papers."

Likewise, we become increasingly discouraged when change rarely delivers what it promises. We are forced to go through the motions of electing our representatives based on minor and superficial differences (or purely emotional issues), and yet receive the same treatment from both parties, with little actual relief from our daily struggles. It's much the same with our employers (funny how they're so similar). Changing jobs will not help you to escape the "corporate culture" that now permeates every large company. And what we are left with is a society in which a choice of flavors no longer matters ..... they all taste the same.

Whaddya' gonna' do ? When someone says this to me, I realize it's meant more as an offhanded comment or perhaps just their helpless surrender to fate. And the acceptable response has become a shrug of your own. But some time ago I decided I'd had enough. To quote the immortal line from the movie Network: " I'm as mad as hell and I'm not gonna' take any more." So now when someone gives me the typical surrender and shrug, I reply very untypically with, "I know what I'm gonna' do. What are you gonna' do? " And when they ask me just what it is I plan to do, I move a little closer, look them squarely in the eyes, and tell them "Whatever it takes". And I guess that brings us to one of the purposes of this site.

It is a well-guarded secret that we are not as helpless as we've been led to believe. (A very convenient state-of-mind for those who like things just the way they are, and would prefer you just take what you're given, sit down, and shut up.) Informed citizens are anything but helpless. In fact, they tend to be very noisy. And they should be. That's what we call democracy.

Sounds like a lot of work. Something you have to study for and take a test that nets you a nice, frameable certificate to hang on your wall. And who's got the time? My brain's already full of things to remember. Paying the bills, saving those receipts for tax time; which store has better meats, which has better produce, which has better prices; checking the oil in the car, the fluids, the tire pressure, watching the odometer so you'll know when it's time to rotate; need to get the new plants in the ground, better mulch this year; new clothes for the kids, birthdays coming up; which pills to take on which days, what to avoid with which pill; need to lose some weight, need to start exercising ........ Who's got time to be an informed citizen? We've got maybe half-an-hour for the news. And even then you can't believe half of what you hear!

The demands we all have in our daily lives do seem to be increasing. It's no illusion. But, am I talking about a lot of work? Well, yes ..... and no. It's not so much the work that's required. It's more about consistency and getting into a habit. Already I'm losing some of you. But look at it this way ..... what if something you could do once a day, once a week, or once a month actually brought some change to your life, some relief? Perhaps not immediate, day-after-tomorrow change. But who's to say?

What it requires is not so much different from going to school or training, or an exercise routine, or taking your meds. We form habits, and we do it because there is a future favorable outcome for ourselves. Becoming an informed citizen is much the same. But, while becoming an informed citizen is the only thing that will ever bring real change for us, the first step is to simply become ... a citizen. And I mean more than just being born here.

Being a citizen requires citizenship. That means getting involved and getting in the habit of making your voice heard. It doesn't have to be every day, or even every week. Even once a month is plenty noisy enough for those who would rather not hear us. But you will begin to find out how painless it can actually be. It can even be very healthy for you if you've got a lot on your chest and can release it on those most responsible. (The number one cause of death in America is still stress, no matter what anyone says.) But most of all, it's damned important ... for your family, your kids, and your kids' kids.

In my next post, I'll discuss some of the ways (and give you some handy and painless tools) to help you improve your voice. And, as always ..... your comments are welcome. (Another way of being heard.) --JW

Informed Citizens intro

I was riding my bicycle, yesterday. Spring always arrives in its own due time and , likewise, I must eventually get around to pulling the bike out, ridding it of cobwebs, washing it down, oiling the sprocket and chain, and pumping air back into the tires. Soon after, my bike and I are gliding down a nice paved road, free as the wind. I always forget how much I love to ride a bicycle. It takes me back to a simpler time when my worries were indeed as simple.

The smell of the flowers in bloom, the grass ... especially just after it's been mowed. So many smells. And the people you pass by, irresistible to give them a wave or a friendly "hey".The feel of the breeze in your face, through your hair. The balance and easy response of the bike as you lean it one way, then the other. The sounds, too. Everything is so alive. And all of the things you somehow must have missed before, even though you've been down this road a hundred times, albeit planted firmly in the seat of a car.

And I guess that's it. Suddenly you just feel so connected to the world around you. Sure, you may get somewhere a lot quicker in a car. And you may feel more protected, if that's one of your concerns. But you're absolutely and completely insulated from the world that blurs on past your side windows. No friendly hellos. No sounds of cheerful birds or children or lawnmowers or someone raking the yard. So many joyous smells, so many little discoveries ... all missed. Riding in the comfort of a car, but essentially isolated from the world around you. You might just as well be inside a bubble. You are inside a bubble.

We can become insulated, as well, in our everyday lives, behind the wheels of the vehicles which are our jobs, our livelihoods, our careers. We become slaves to time and the need to rush, or to the comforts of our life-vehicles. Yet, there is so much we miss along the way. If we are fortunate and reach our destination quickly, it merely allows us to rush somewhere else, and then somewhere else. Going more places, but seldom being anywhere.

As we get older we have a tendency to look back through nostalgic eyes, amidst murmurings of simpler times. Still, I do recall a time when things were, if not simpler, far less complicated and consuming. It was a time when a single wage-earner could support a family for most Americans. They could pay for a home, a new car every five or six years, and even a yearly vacation. The other spouse was free to manage the home and raise the kids, or go to work to bring in a little extra for a new dishwasher (or because they were just bored). It was an option, a choice.

Of course, life was never easy. But it was far from the demeaning struggle to survive that it is now. There were, naturally, some who were better off than others and who were afforded more educational opportunities. But even for the many uneducated or unskilled workers there remained opportunities for a decent and comfortable living. If you didn't become a tradesman or open up a little store, you could still make a good living as a laborer. Those days have vanished along with our savings. And as manufacturing disappeared, along with it went the dignities and opportunities for decent lives for millions of Americans. The jobs that remain for the laborer largely pay a pitiful wage, requiring two such wage-earners in order to simply keep their noses above the waterline.

Even a college degree now guarantees you very little. Many of the educated now graduate from school shouldering a mountain of oppressive debt and finding themselves in the same "two-wage-earner" struggle to survive. And what of the "mom-and-pop" stores which used to line both sides of Main Street? They now face the daunting obstacles of big-box corporate chains and government regulations put in place more as an effort to assure monopoly for big business than to insure protections for the tax-paying consumer.

We speak often now of "the little guy" and those who are disenfranchised or who have limited opportunities. "Those people are having such a hard time right now." Yet, we are also beginning to realize that those people are rapidly becoming we the people. It is no longer them, it is us. And unless you are among the percentile who has lived a gilded existence (or are insulated by your income from the majority of Americans), then you are likely feeling that something's not right. In much of the world, but especially in America, people retain a sense of what is fair, and what is simply unjust. We are now beginning to sober and to proclaim, "This is not working for me". THIS IS NOT WORKING FOR ME.

So, what to do? I began this piece essentially pitching the joys and fulfillment of simpler living. I still think it's the way to go, for all of us. I think we will find that when we want less ... we need less. And when we need less ... we can work less (freeing up that most precious of all commodities ------ time.) It can serve us in good times and in bad, because it gives us independence. Freedom.

Admittedly, most of us are already starting to live simpler lives, out of sheer necessity for survival. And maybe that's a good thing. But the fact remains that living simply has become more of a symptom of our diminishing livelihoods than any lifestyle choice. And soon even living a simpler life (economically) will not be enough.

In my next post I'll discuss where we go from here. I'll lay out the purpose of this site and what we can hopefully do together --- what we must do together --- in order to regain the dignity and the decency of the promise that is America. And what it means to be Informed Citizens. Please join me. -JW