Saturday, March 1, 2014

Dear Mr. President:

I am sure that you are well aware of the importance of the upcoming election. It presents an unprecedented opportunity to break the grip of those forces which are retrograde to our evolution, who have blocked, and rolled back many of our efforts to expand government of, for, and by the people.

Elections are the one opportunity for the people to let their voice be heard.    They are the moment for action. The action is the vote.

I ask the individuals I encounter if they are registered voters. Almost half of them are not. A large percentage of those who are do not vote regularly. The Bipartisan Research Center places the voter turnout in 2012 election cycle at 57.5% of the eligible voters.

The question is how can we reach those who are not voting. I know that we have registration and “get out the vote” campaigns. But in 2012 42% of the eligible voters were not involved enough to bother to vote.

And yet, those with whom I talk, even the majority of those non-voters, are aware of and have real concern for the suffering of individuals. They have a sensitivity of the heart for suffering and inequality. Most people have a relative or close friend whose family has and is suffering from unemployment, lost pensions, homes, lack of health care, etcetera.

I think the weakness in our approach to these citizens is that we speak to them about policy, about budgets, costs and technical details of legislation and economics, and about personalities. This stuff is very boring to most people.

What the people care about has to do with dignity, with their rights, with equality. When I chat with these folks, I encourage them to vote for their dignity and equality, I suggest that when they vote they listen to what their heart tells them, that the vote be cast, not against anything and certainly not for a personality, but for those programs and those individuals in whom they can see the heart at work for the advancement of equality, the relief of suffering, the generation of beauty, the care for our children. I am sure you know these things.

I think that by appealing to our brothers and sisters hearts, they may be encouraged to vote. I think that if you talk to us about the things that matter we can we ignite that spark of fire that that we know lies in the breast of every human being into some kind of a blaze.

This is the path out of the morass of egoism and illusion and into a greater manifestation of Democracy.
Lots of love
-tom