I saw a comment online today that I found annoying, disheartening, infuriating and just so sad. That person said what many, many people are saying – what maybe you’ve said – it’s such a common sentiment.
And ever so wrong.
What did that person say? Simply that we will have to wait until the midterms before we can do anything about the state of our government.
My reaction:
Seriously? What the heck are they teaching in Civics nowadays? Do people really believe that the only two ways to make their wishes known to government are vote and riot in the streets?
Okay, deep breath. I’m calm now.
Not really but let’s talk turkey anyway. You – yes, you – have a lot more in your arsenal than waiting two years to vote the idiots out or grabbing a pitchfork and hitting the streets. Weapon Number one is the one you’re looking at – not the blog – your computer. The web provides two easy methods to contact your representative – social media and email. Three if you count typing up an old fashioned – but effective – letter and mailing that.
Four if you count looking up your representative’s phone number. Yeppers, they all have real phones and staffers to answer those phones. The numbers are on the .gov websites (links are all below).
So, what else do you need? First and foremost, a clear statement of what you are upset about and what you want the representative to do about it. You don’t need to look up specific bill numbers if it’s an issue – like the Afghanistan withdrawal. There might not be one anyway – but the point is you just need to have a clear complaint and a clear solution that you want your representative to implement.
Think of a congressional representative as a seven year old with an adult vocabulary – just like talking to a seven year old, you have to make yourself understood and not leave any wiggle room. Nothing hard about it – you do it everyday.
Second, persistence. Expect an answer and follow up if you get one. If you don’t get one, send another message – try a different method.
In the meantime, talk to your friends both face to face and online. Tell them your concerns and see if they share them. Maybe they too will want to take action – maybe not – but the midterm elections have already begun so now’s the time to get people thinking about who they want representing them – especially if that representative isn’t taking the actions they want.
Post respectfully to the representative’s social media pages – and a copy of your post to your own. If it is removed, complain – and tell all your online friends, showing them the evidence of what you’d said. It’s not likely to be removed if you are respectful – just don’t be a jerk – but you can also complain when there is no response in a reasonable amount of time. We pay the salaries of the representative’s staff so there’s little excuse for no response.
The final thing is to not quit. It’s not just the squeaky wheel that gets the grease – it’s the wheel that won’t stop squeaking. Representatives get a boatload of polling data – imagine what happens when instead of faceless numbers in a randomized sample, it’s actual voting constituents that are demanding the representative’s attention. Even one letter can sometimes be the difference because a real voter is behind a letter – and every representative knows it.
Let’s be real – some representatives are not going to respond favorably. That can be because they are themselves ideologues – or you are legitimately in the minority. Write, call and post anyway. Sometimes that guy that you’re certain will never change does – you simply can’t know how effective you will be until you try. Really try, not just post a comment you know will get buried – post where you know it will get seen.
The most jaded politician wants to stay in office – even in the worst case, sometimes enough pressure will convince them to change course for their own political good. So use that pressure – be part of the solution.
And do it now.
Contact Links – Federal
Hyperlink and full link
House:
United States House of Representatives
Senate:
United States Senate
President:
Office of the President of the United States
https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/
Phone Numbers and Addresses
https://www.whitehouse.gov/get-involved/write-or-call/
