What Are You Doing ?
Aug 8th, 2010 by Frank Knotts
This question comes up quite often when you start talking about your support of one candidate over another.
The question more often than not comes from someone who feels, that they have all the answers, for how to get their chosen candidate elected. It also often comes from someone who has been involved in campaigns in the past, and who feels that they have all the answers to get their chosen candidate elected.
It seems that old timers in the politics game feel that if you oppose their candidate, then you are not doing enough for your own. I can’t tell you how many times since I came out in support of Christine O’Donnell, who is running in the Delaware GOP primary, to be held Sept 14th,2010, to decide the GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate, that I have been told, that I am not doing the right things to get her elected.
I have written numerous articles spelling out my support for Ms. O’Donnell. I have also written numerous articles listing my reasons for my opposition to Mike Castle. I have spoken with my family and friends, my co-workers, I call in to local talk radio. I have spoken with both candidates about important issues and passed that information on to others. I have made contributions to her campaign. And still people who oppose Ms. O’Donnell will tell me because I haven’t made phone calls or stuffed envelopes, if I haven’t knocked on doors, that I have not done enough and that this some how proves that my opinion of the race is not legitimate.
Here is my opinion. We all can do, all that we can do. We all have different schedules, different obligations, and different skills. We can use these skills to help the candidate that we support, in the amount of time we have, while living up to our other obligations in life.
This means that if you feel strongly about seeing a candidate elected, then do something, anything. If you feel that you can write, then start a blog, or at the very least get involved in the conversations on the blogs, make comments. Get your point of view out there.
If this is not your cup of tea, then write to the editors of the news papers, again get your views out there.
Do something ! Talk to your family and friends, your neighbors, your co-workers. Talk about what is important to you and to them and tell them why the candidate you support is the right candidate to address those issues.
If you have spare time to become involved with the campaigns, then do so. They need volunteers, to stuff envelopes and make phone calls and to knock on doors. These are all important task.
But be prepared. There will be those who oppose you, who will criticize you for not doing enough. If you tell them you are doing “THIS”, they will say, you should also be doing “THAT”. And if you tell them you are doing “THAT”, they will ask, but are you doing “THIS”?
I personally believe that any campaign is better served by two hundred people doing two hundred different things, than two hundred people doing the same thing.
So if you feel as I feel, about Christine O’Donnell, that there is a candidate out there that is the future and who should be elected, then get involved. Do something, either on your own or get in touch with the campaign. Ask what they need and then work to your skills. We can all do something! But first we must take the time to be informed, then we must be motivated to act on our beliefs. But don’t ever let someone tell you that you are not doing enough, if you are doing all that you can. And if you can do nothing but lend financial support, then do that.
These are desperate times, we as citizens can no longer afford to set back and allow the longtime politicians and party establishment to make our choices for us. We must seek out information, and not merely accept that which is spoon fed us by the legions in the mainstream media. We must take that information and spread it to others. We must use that information to make informed decisions about who we elect. As I have said many times, if we want better elected official, we must begin by becoming better voters. We can become better voters by becoming involved.
So ! What are you doing?
Frank, I have sent messages through her website asking what I could do to volunteer on two different occasions, and have had no response. I’ve even sent messages to Christine herself on her fb page asking her what I could do and have had no response. How is someone supposed to volunteer for someone when the campaign won’t return a constituent’s message?
Mike
welcome home Frank, I hope the vacation with the Mrs. was great. Now…we have just over 30 days to finish what we started.
I have sent messages through her website asking what I could do to volunteer on two different occasions, and have had no response.
That’s par for the course. Next time, send money.
Castle’s ripe for the picking, but a dysfunctional campaign won’t get the job done. Too bad.
Mike… That wouldn’t happen to be your real name would it?
Why wouldn’t it be my real name?
Not you, I was talking about Mike Hunt. Say it fast(and think like a 13 year old), and you will understand where I am coming from.