That seems to be the case Lee. I don't know how we beat it, just that we should try. Yet trying hurts because they are so smarmy.
On 11 Dec, 14:29, Lee <[email protected]> wrote: > Good question man. > > Voter apathy? Personaly I feel this impotentance myself. I can feel > the rage building every time I see one of the smarmy little sods on > TV, yep I mean politicians. > > What angers me the most is the aviodance of answering the question put > to you. Instead they take the question as an oppertunity to slag off > the opposition(okay I can expect a certian amount of this with a > general election due) or answer a question they really wish to answer, > but not the one asked. > > Why do I feel impotent? Because I know no matter which way I vote, > due to the ammount of people that just wont bother, and the ammount of > people that will vote not according to their conciounse, but in line > with what the media portrays, well I fear we'll have no more than a > repeat of what has been going on for as long as I can remember. > > People get fed up with fed up with the sleaze of present goverment as > portayed in the media, and just vote the opposition in, no matter who > that opposition is. Then perhaps 8, or 10, or 12 years later people > get pissed off with the sleaze of goverement and vote the opposition > in. Round and round we go again and again. > > On 11 Dec, 13:48, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > Most people I've known anywhere in the world have had little time for > > politics. The basic reason given is that politicians feather their > > own nests. Fear and ingroup hatreds often lead to tribal or sectarian > > voting. Perhaps, underneath this, is that many just want to get on > > with their own lives - something most people see as harmless. Most > > people also feel their efforts would be useless a kind of impotence > > seems involved. I have never found it possible to vote for changes I > > really want, though I usually turn out at the ballot. Whips were > > originally slaves used to whip in recalcitrant citizens - a double > > shame of not carrying out civic duties and the mark of the slave's > > lash was involved. Before the Iraq war I protested on the streets, > > but could not find anyone to vote for who would definitely have kept > > us out of the war, though the Liberals, who I did vote for, remained > > against it in opposition. > > Our own MP should be deselected on the basis of his lack of help and > > nastiness over neighbour problems that were very severe, but in fact > > it's difficult to get heard anywhere. > > If we can believe global warming and related issues (to some extent we > > still cannot), the planet could only host 1.5 billion US-style > > consumers or 15 billion Rwandan ones. War is still everywhere > > (obviously subject to limits). Criminality, bent professions and > > dismal business practices all lead to a lack of personal security > > unless one conforms by exploiting one's intelligence or 'birth- > > rights'. The press remains largely self-interested and poodle. > > Education is increasingly about being successful gaining > > qualifications for business as usual. Even to protest can be simply > > to join another set of businesses doing little other than support lead > > protesters in that 'success' or to assuage conscience. My guess is > > that war escalation is not far away. > > Over the years, I've read most of the material on social change, > > pathologies in capitalism and the Sino-Soviet experiments, the great > > myths of democratic, liberal capitalism and a whole wad of quasi- > > philosophical organisation theories and social psychology - all of > > which seem doomed to failure as one reads them - they rest on an > > impossible dream of an educated, rational 'voting force' that can put > > its own interests aside under some form of a 'cloak of objectivity' (a > > term from Rawls). Many stress 'leadership', yet we know power tends > > to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. I have been filled > > with Bildung from literature, myth and science, yet feel this is > > merely a burden in a moral climate that (unlike the planet) has > > remained frozen - not least because the Bildung itself is a path to > > 'success' as an erudite critic. It's almost like market segmentation, > > a matter of finding that section of the market in which one's views > > are saleable. > > I want a situation in which politics and government are largely > > unnecessary, yet I also want responsible population control and lives > > that are more about being than having, protection from bandits and > > anti-social scum, genuine representation for my interests and those of > > others on an individual basis so that big power, wealth and so on are > > on an equal footing - clearly, if I'm honest, I'm still interested in > > control. > > The planet probably sits back knowing (Lovelock) it can survive > > humanity and I can probably 'survive to death' in reasonable comfort > > until it's all over (fatalism). What's on offer is hardly a hill of > > beans. > > My own take on this situation is that the control and impotence are > > set in evolution, much in the way a wolf pack organises. What we have > > is forced on us to maintain a libidinal economy in which a few exploit > > the excess. There is merely a nagging glimmer of what else might be. > > Our politicians are mostly just cunning idiots and our media much the > > same. There is little we can do, unless we can work out why thinking > > of doing makes us scared, perhaps so scared we avoid standing up. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/minds-eye?hl=en.
