If Joe Six Pack bothered to vote and participate in our democratic process in the first place, I would not freak out that Corporate America can now freely lavish dollars down on our politicians, as it seems this new Supreme Court ruling seems to imply. The problem isn't that companies can equally waste their board members' money on this candidate AND his/her rival, as companies and lobbyists typically give to both parties (geeze, aren't they glad we only have two!), it's that the average American sees this and immediately gets a limp dick like some bad movie rating in a Hustler magazine (do they still do that?). Come on folks! This is an easy one! It isn't how much or who gives but how much if any access that money buys. If your congressperson or senator gets $100 a pop Cuban cigars and $150 steak dinner from R.J. Reynolds, I'd say, "Good for him/her"-we all steal from work. But if that means that same representative skips a townhall meeting to indulge in those aforementioned pleasures, then we have a problem. I propose a website devoted exclusively to listing how many constituent events each sitting representative visits or participants in along with a 1-10 rating scale indicating the significance of the event. Participating (not just talking at)a school board meeting where there is vote on cutting teachers gets a 8 while having coffee at the local Starbucks gets a 2 (nothing against Starbucks but why should you get points for having coffee?). Holding a town hall meeting to explain (better yet how about discuss-now there's a novel idea!) health care reform gets a 10 while shaking hands at the Wal-Mart gets a -5 (I DO have something against them). Newbies running for office for the first time get the same rating for the same activities. This website would be regularly updated throughout the campaign.
I love it! Simple answers to complex questions. Sometimes it is all about knowing the right questions to ask.
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