“Thank you for your thoughts on this matter, I didn’t read them. Here is a boilerplate statement espousing all the great things about this bill that you specifically criticized in your message to me. Please don’t reach out again.”
This may be why the older generation have more sway. Call them, talk to a person or get a call back. You can’t boiler plate that.
This is not why the older generation has more sway. Calling just means talking to an intern who will read you the boilerplate, and then mark down a for/against tally if you’re lucky. Most of them don’t even care about that since they’re ideological motivated rather than caring what constituents think.
No. It’s because they reliably vote.
Everyone insists that writing your representatives works, but neglect to tell you that there’s a million other things that keep them from getting things done.
My dad is a member of the local town council. I ask him about maybe making safe sidewalks so his grandkids can visit without needing to drive, he just shrugs and says it will take years to do. His experience in government has really recalibrated what I think government is capable of.
If a local government can’t get a hundred yards of sidewalk paved when one of the leaders is pushing for it, how long would it take the federal government to build high speed rail?
I’ll share a different story then. Over the past several years, I’ve participated in a movement to get bus rapid transit lanes which is moving forward. I started as a citizen advocate, then represented the bus company (as an advocate) through several phases of studies, then led a community engagement team in which I personally talked to over a thousand local residents and gave more than a dozen presentations to the community and stakeholders. I’ve sparred with NIMBYs and congresspersons alike. And now the project is moving forward and will dedicate over a third of a major roadway exclusively to bus service.
Cynicism is crack for slacktivists and keyboard warriors.
Exactly my point. It took one person working that hard for free for months or maybe years to get that done, dragging the government kicking and screaming into a good idea.
That wouldn’t be necessary if our government wasn’t broken.
Every response I get from any of my representatives.
“Thank you for reaching out, here are all the things I’m paid by my real bosses to say about this issue, please shut up now and leave me alone so I can blow my financiers”
“Also, I have shared your email address and phone number with everyone I know, so enjoy the spam asking for donations to politicians who whole-heartedly support the issues you just told me you disagree with!”
“Please enjoy my quarterly newsletter that hopes to gaslight you about how the policies that actively hurt you are actually in your best interest!”
