UPCOMING CRISIS
It isn't even New Year's time yet and time to start have special worries about the coming year.
Among such problems will be one which stays with us year-after-year and is usually just after a major election day or just before one. Citizens, who haven' t thought of it for months, feel a sudden concern for their political party and lament loudly over the number of qualified people who are non-voters. On an average we do well to get a bit over one half of eligible voters to actually do so in our elections.
If we were serious and completely honest with ourselves we would concede that this could be one of the flaws non-Democracy-minded peoples say make out system weak and worthless. The problm deserves study and re-evaluation. If not, we can expect it to become a crisis of out future.
It is an obvious flaw in our government structure. If we are to remain a republic, we had best remember the observation of Benjamin Franklin, who when asked what type of government we had just instituted said:..'we have republic, if we can hold on to "it", or words to that Colonial-times extent. We, the people of the new nation - must be more than casually concerned about the running of our government.
We are commongly told that many voters have been turned off". I think that sort of reasoning comes from the more liberal side of things who seem to accept the idea that voters can,indeed, be switched "on" or "off" by political, economic, or social pressures of one sort or another. Moderate and Conservatives allow more freedom in some ways, yet they do embody some qualities which could curb elements of creative innovation among voters. Much depends on the manner in which "statesmen" set forth their plans. Many politicians, fearful of not drawing enough votes, use the quality of fear to arouse interest.
What is the basis for this underlying strata of distrust?
We tend to seek learned and rather lumpy ingredients, in need of prcessing to help us mix up a potion which might help us counteract such a socio-politcal ailment. We look on the right area, but in the wrong direction when we turn to Acadamia. The reasons are plural, complicated and, oddly enough, recent as well.
We have, for the 2nd half of the past century, at least, failed to teach our children the basis of American history and its relationship to that of the world's other nations. In the l930's when we diminished the name "History" ; started calling it "Civics" and became guilty of feeding the eager minds of our youngsters fragment in what were called "Units of Study". Geography had all but disappeared at about the same time and that meant the end of regional and geographically- oriented literature and science attainment as well.
Think about those radical years of academic change! That's where we will find the causes of the current lack of interest in and concern for our national well-being.
A.L.M. December 16, 2004 [c449wds]
