| Where do we put our political energy? We can prioritize |
 |
 |
“We can decide that it’s all so much time-wasting horsepucky and check out from the process."By Kat Alikhan kalikhan@bigcanoenews.com 
Kat Alikhan
“We in America do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate.” This is my favorite Thomas Jefferson quote. It puts the responsibility for our democracy squarely on the shoulders of us all, not just our elected officials. But how can we best participate in our democracy given the sheer volume and magnitude of issues bombarding our senses, souls and psyches like a raging storm? To which issues do we, as individuals, put our finite attention and resources? Should we focus on local issues, state issues, national issues or global issues? I take issue with there being so many issues. Isn’t this what our president, senators, representatives, state legislators, county commissioners, city council members and myriad government agencies get paid to handle? Oh, wait. I forgot about Jefferson’s quote. Mr. Jefferson would not tolerate lassitude on my part (or yours). Surely he would take us to task for languor and complacency. Where, then, to put our political energy? We can prioritize our concerns, wading up to our waist on some while dipping our toes in others. We can focus on one area only and start a movement, chair a committee or align our skills and temperaments in some way with that particular cause. We can decide that it’s all so much time-wasting horsepucky and check out from the process, relegating our activism to bumper sticker democracy, voting the party line or screaming obscenities at television pundits and politicos. Taking the leap (or baby step) into participation requires that we educate ourselves and if we’re lucky we learn that it is through participation that we are educated. We get involved knowing there are no guaranteed outcomes and that our efforts may go unrecognized or undervalued. All politics at some point being local, two issues come to mind that are worth highlighting. Last year many Dawson county citizens and Big Canoe residents worked hard to make their voices heard over the roar of unctuous city council support for the proposed Atlanta Motorsports Park in Dawsonville. Despite numerous organized and educated citizens denouncing the potential destruction of 150 bucolic acres and the spot-zoning of the aforementioned acres from residential to commercial — a flouting of the Comprehensive Land Use Plan approved by the city government only months before — we lost the first round. But the lawsuit filed against the developer and the City of Dawsonville by adjacent property owners is moving forward. It ain’t over until the fat lady sings, but I guess the developer is hearing arias because grading of the area appears to have begun. More recently, a Pickens County citizens’ advisory committee (of which I am a member) worked with painstaking attention to the letter and the spirit of the legal process for eight months to craft a referendum to appear on the November 2010 ballot. The referendum would give voters a chance to weigh in on whether or not to transition the county from a sole commissioner to a multi-person board of commissioners. Much of the beauty of the bipartisan committee was that not everyone on it favored such a transition. The work they did was to honor the results of a nonbinding referendum in 2008 in which the majority of voters, Democrats and Republicans, indicated interest in the change. Some individuals probably stepped up to provide oversight, an important and smart thing to do. How was this exemplary display of democracy in action rewarded? With State Senator Chip Pearson declaring that he’s not sure he will support the measure — after the crafting of the legislation was completed and without a word of input or feedback from him over the two-thirds of a year the committee labored. Pearson’s cooperation is required to introduce and support the legislation in the Georgia General Assembly, as is State Representative Tom Graves’. Yes, Pearson has the constitutional right to ignore or alter locally proposed legislation, but it smacks of paternalism and felt like a slap in the face to blindside us in this way. But again, the fat lady is still not singing and the good Senator may yet change his tune. (Indeed, he may have by the time you read this.) Sometimes it feels like our legislators don’t really want us involved in the process of government — that it’s their turf, not ours. It’s hard not to be discouraged and I have to remind myself that if I don’t participate, others make my choices for me and their choices may not be in my best interest or the best interest of my community. I imagine what Thomas Jefferson would say at this point in history to ordinary, well-intentioned persons who care as much about the responsibilities of being a citizen as they care about their individual rights. Do not give up, he might say. Do. Not. Give. Up. |
| Big Canoe Living Photo Gallery March 2010 |
 |
| Amicalola Deer Park ... |
Resources
| Share Your Opinion |
| Subscribe to E-mail News |
| Contact Us |
| Search Recent Articles |
| Archives May '01-Feb '07 |
| Copy Instructions |
| Site Map |
Our Weather
|
Marble Hill, GA
|
|||||||
 |
|
||||||
|
 SE
|
||||||
| Show more details | |||||||
|
Provided by:
 |
|||||||
A Tennis Committee update to the tennis community.
...
This year is the fifth anniversary of bocce in Big Canoe
...
The fun begins in earnest with opening day – March 20
...
Get in the "swing" for 2010 with MGA and WGA—and the Jr. Golf Camps
...
The greens are unreal; they are fast, they are undulating and they are severe.
...
Come join the fun and learn bocce ball basics at boot camp!
...
Just how do we increase our good HDL cholesterol levels? Aerobic exercise helps.
...
"We all know the combination of excitement and dread that the pre-season tends to arouse"
...
Each year brings changes and transitions. 2009 was no exception.
...