Do you vote in political elections?
Funny you should ask. I used to, but I really don’t see the point.
I live in a red state with a Republican Governor and a Republican supermajority in the state legislature. These people do whatever the fuck they want with impunity.
But where are the Democrats?
Here in Alabama we don’t have a Democratic Party. We have the party of Joe Reed, and what Joe Reed says is what the Alabama Democrats do. And do not for one minute think he is a benevolent leader; he’d see us all die before he’d give up an ounce of power.
Yes, the DNC knows. Yes, they made some moves toward cleaning things up here, but as soon as they turned their head, Joe was right back doing the same old shit.
Today, for example, there was a statewide party meeting. Those who didn’t pay their $50 poll tax (that’s not what they called it, but that’s what it was) were not allowed to attend, even though they’d not been told of any fee beforehand. One member offered to pay the fee on-site, was refused, then denied entry because they didn’t pay the fee (here’s Al.com’s coverage of the event).
Then Joe and his flying monkeys dismantled committees representing LGBTQ+, youth, and the disabled. Yes, the Alabama Democrats did that today.
I am deeply hurt, but I’m also furious! It’s like the Democratic Party has decided we’re not worth the trouble, so we’ll let Joe Reed burn it all down.
And no, this isn’t a problem unique to Alabama. Many red states have the same problem that the DNC doesn’t do shit about. Hell, they let Florida go red; would a healthy state party think the best candidate against DeSantis for re-election a former Republican governor who switched parties because the Republicans didn’t like him anymore?
You wonder why so many of us hate both political parties? Here ya go. To them we are pawns in their power struggles instead of people worthy of governance.
In 2020 the federal government sued Alabama for widespread violence and maltreatment of those incarcerated in state prisons. Alabama’s response was to build more prisons. After the feds wouldn’t allow the state to use CARES Act money to build the prisons, Alabama Governor Ivy in 2022 signed a no-bid contract for a 4,000-bed prison to be built in Elmore, Alabama at a cost of $623 million; that price tag has now increased to over a billion dollars and may increase more. Meanwhile Democrats are too busy destroying each other to do a damn thing about it.
But we’re all fine here and my county is the fastest-growing one in the state thanks to all those Pentagon contracts that end up down here. You know, they’re the ones that are never audited. Yes, your tax dollars support this foolishness. We’re also still in the running to host Space Force here.
Thanks for the largesse, but I really wish you’d do something about that. We obviously can’t, and the politicians won’t. You’re really our only hope.
Dogpaddling Through Life 
Great post! A state government dominated by one party seems horribly frustrating. Here in Wisconsin, you never know who will come out on top.
You are fortunate in some respects, but you have far too many who drank the fascist koolaid to consider your state healthy.
We have similar problems on a smaller scale. I live in a safe seat. Our politicians are only interested in the views of voters in swing seats. The system is broken.
There should be no safe seats. That’s not a two-party system. And yes, it’s broken.
I feel your pain.
It is not just over there.
Although we do have more than two parties, it is Hobson’s choice.
I don’t tolerate being a pawn too well.
I feel your pain, but I urge you to continue voting.
If we all abandon the polls, which we all at times would love to do, we have given in to those whose objectives are to suppress our voices altogether.
When we vote, we send a signal that we care about who leads us and what they stand – or don’t stand-for.
Think about your freedoms. If you can, don’t just vote. Hell, run for office.
I can’t afford to run for office, and I will vote, but only if they are neither beholden to Trump or to Joe Reed.
bloggate0.wordpress.com
Great
I know that we do get tired of our government sometimes but I say we continue voting because your vote can make a difference. If you vote you let them know that you care about who leads you and you have the right to choose who leads you
Totally understand that
Voting is a supreme exercise in futility when all of the parties are bought and paid for, simply two sides of the same coin, madmen harassed and bought by the elite that run the show, just like 1984, there is only one party in the end, and it’s the Unseen shadow hand of that which rules secretly, and we can’t vote for them. It’s all a sham.
Pretty much.
Voting is always worth the trouble.
We will agree to disagree.
I wish I could sway your choice. I understand and it’s your decision.
The day politicians begin to act in the best interest of their constituents is the day I’ll vote again. I doubt I’ll ever have to.
Some
I agree with that 👍💯