Get Out and Vote
The budget crises facing many state governments throughout the country has got me thinking about how we've come to this point. Governors in Wisconsin, Indiana, Florida, Ohio and New Jersey have been repeating the mantra that it is the generous contracts and benefits of public-sector workers that has brought their state economies to their knees. Yes, there is a very real financial crisis. But rather than focus on who is responsible for these problems, or even ways to solve them, I would like to frame the argument in a different way. This crisis is really about voting.
I was raised in a very conservative, Republican environment. As the daughter of immigrants, I regularly witnessed my father and other relatives working 80-100 hours a week. Although they worked very hard, the potential financial rewards were enormous. Many a dinner-table conversation revolved around what it took to achieve the American Dream, and as is frequently the case with immigrants, they want their first generation children to go to college and earn a degree. For me, it meant giving up a part-time job at Olga's Diner, where my tired legs regularly got a workout on the hard terrazzo floor, and going into the classroom.
Although I could never achieve the financial success of my father, we often talked about money, especially since I was making a very modest salary. This lead to discussions regarding Republican and Democratic values, and it wasn't until I was well into my 30s that I realized the direct impact that voting had on my livelihood. My father would always say that if you want to protect what you've got, you have to go out and vote. He also added that in general, the Republican Party offered more financial protection to those who had a lot more to protect.
And this brings us to today. The connection between what elected officials do and how it affects individuals is lost on many. In the last election cycle, many working and middle class (i.e. union members) didn't even bother to vote. From my vantage point, it's awfully difficult to empathize with people who do not participate in a system that gives them a voice. This takes some effort, however. It means reading up on the candidates' platforms, assessing how they might vote on legislation, and paying attention to what candidates are not saying.
It may be a while before we know exactly how the stalemate will end in Wisconsin, or what other Republican-led states will do, but one thing we know for sure: governors are taking on public-sector workers because they can. What we are witnessing is a perfect storm of the effects of the 2008 financial crisis, which depleted a number of pension pools, resentment among non-union workers, whose wages and benefits started eroding 20 years ago, and taxpayer anger. While these governors claim that this is the best solution to the crisis, they've got emotion on their side, and that is how they are framing the argument. As Governor Christie is fond of saying, he was elected by the people to make changes, and in this he is holding true.
Upper income individuals vote at a much higher rate than those with middle and lower incomes, so if nothing else, perhaps the current assault on public-sector workers will inspire traditional non-voters to participate in the process in the next election. Until then, we should all keep in mind that state officials--from school board members to state legislators to governors and presidents--are elected, and once they are in leadership positions, they can wield an awful lot of power. Conducting sit-ins at the state capitol may get a lot of attention, but nothing beats pushing the lever behind the curtain.
I was raised in a very conservative, Republican environment. As the daughter of immigrants, I regularly witnessed my father and other relatives working 80-100 hours a week. Although they worked very hard, the potential financial rewards were enormous. Many a dinner-table conversation revolved around what it took to achieve the American Dream, and as is frequently the case with immigrants, they want their first generation children to go to college and earn a degree. For me, it meant giving up a part-time job at Olga's Diner, where my tired legs regularly got a workout on the hard terrazzo floor, and going into the classroom.
Although I could never achieve the financial success of my father, we often talked about money, especially since I was making a very modest salary. This lead to discussions regarding Republican and Democratic values, and it wasn't until I was well into my 30s that I realized the direct impact that voting had on my livelihood. My father would always say that if you want to protect what you've got, you have to go out and vote. He also added that in general, the Republican Party offered more financial protection to those who had a lot more to protect.
And this brings us to today. The connection between what elected officials do and how it affects individuals is lost on many. In the last election cycle, many working and middle class (i.e. union members) didn't even bother to vote. From my vantage point, it's awfully difficult to empathize with people who do not participate in a system that gives them a voice. This takes some effort, however. It means reading up on the candidates' platforms, assessing how they might vote on legislation, and paying attention to what candidates are not saying.
It may be a while before we know exactly how the stalemate will end in Wisconsin, or what other Republican-led states will do, but one thing we know for sure: governors are taking on public-sector workers because they can. What we are witnessing is a perfect storm of the effects of the 2008 financial crisis, which depleted a number of pension pools, resentment among non-union workers, whose wages and benefits started eroding 20 years ago, and taxpayer anger. While these governors claim that this is the best solution to the crisis, they've got emotion on their side, and that is how they are framing the argument. As Governor Christie is fond of saying, he was elected by the people to make changes, and in this he is holding true.
Upper income individuals vote at a much higher rate than those with middle and lower incomes, so if nothing else, perhaps the current assault on public-sector workers will inspire traditional non-voters to participate in the process in the next election. Until then, we should all keep in mind that state officials--from school board members to state legislators to governors and presidents--are elected, and once they are in leadership positions, they can wield an awful lot of power. Conducting sit-ins at the state capitol may get a lot of attention, but nothing beats pushing the lever behind the curtain.
posted by olgapolites at 4:54 AM
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