Citizens Prerogative

Episode discussion topics

• Make sure we take action to secure our right to vote by electing candidates that support voting reform for equal ballot access and representation in congress.
  
• The misinformation campaigns have the people confused by design. Everything is held hostage by money from the rich feeding into a two-party monopoly that has eroded any sense of confidence in our institutions.
  
• Regarding the history of "direct" elections where citizens, not legislatures, cast ballots for federal offices, the popular vote wasn't always popular. Still isn't in many parts. Citizens can now vote for Senators and that only began in 1913 and voting for Presidential Electors was being handled by some state legislators, instead of citizens, up through the 1860s with exceptions that continued to occur up through 1876 with a recent close call back in 2000. Wikipedia covers the Electoral College here for more information.
  
• Quoting the article from above, "The Constitution gives each state legislature the power to decide how its state's electors are chosen and it can be easier and cheaper for a state legislature to simply appoint a slate of electors than to create a legislative framework for holding elections to determine the electors."
• There are all too many state legislators willing, ready, and able to take our votes back from our control, more like things used to be, and submit their own ballots on our behalf when it comes to elected federal positions. We can lose our liberty and our vote. It's been far worse in the past which makes for uncomfortable precedence.
• The day for service in the name of Martin Luther King Jr. was just last month in January and February, when this episode is being released, is Black History Month.
  • In that spirit, we give thanks to a human whose vision and yearning for equality echoes through to now. Our hope for a more equal, a more just, a more perfect union, is set upon the vision he articulated, and it sets the stage for a better tomorrow for us all.
  • In his words, "The time is always right to do what is right." He also reminded us, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." 
    
• With those thoughts in mind, it is easy to see how we're now staged for some unsettling changes. We will need to lean on his wisdom as we weather the storms against civil rights ahead. Couple those figurative squalls with the unprecedented changes that our food sources and habitats are about to experience in the physical world. Viruses are just the beginning of the coming plague of infectious fallacies and climate catastrophes.
  
• What we shall be mindful of…
  
  • The rise of daddy-knows-best totalitarianism through one-party rule; much like the kingmaker playbooks of China and Russia.
    
  • The extreme among the right-wing in America is looking to return our republic to some of its worse roots, highlighted by elitist minority rule, “Only I can fix it” mentality. This is in opposition to a plurality among us who are vying for a better way: equal representation, taxation, and a fair shot at fulfilling one's purpose.
    
  • We need to care about fairness in the system, it impacts our daily lives and fosters trust in our institutions. We have seen this work well on many occasions and other systems around the world provide us with even more examples to borrow.
  • A system still powered by the gyrations between the greedy who get rich and the poor who work to make them so, cannot last. The pursuit of happiness by the rich is conducted on roads paved by the poor, who are not left in a position to pursue happiness by their participation in the system. It doesn't need to be this way. No homelessness, ignorance, sickness, or hunger need apply in the process of lifting one's self by their bootstraps. For our house can have a floor and our a nation can have roads that we can all travel on!
  • We need to see ourselves in each other as fellow citizens under our laws because we're the only ones we got in this world. All the others are autocrats and their bureaucratic handlers. 
• Calls to Action:
  
  • It's not clear we can count on the current congress to be able to prevent the backward slide into a republic from the good old days, where only a few can vote and own property. Please do not allow your state representatives to steal your vote. Check out this great article from History.com on how Electoral College Electors are chosen, hint: it's decided by state legislatures.
    
  • Learning to navigate the new processes for registering to vote and casting your ballot. Check out a timelessly reliable resource, RockTheVote.org for more information on how to register and vote specifically in your state.
  • More than ever it's time to turn out in high numbers if we want a clear majority in congress to move reform forward for a more perfect union and a better future for us all. We will be releasing a platform to help formalize the issues of paramount importance right now. It is in production and will premier as a multi-part series soon. Stay tuned.
  • Albeit congress is in negotiations for minor tweaks to shore up the system like the John Lewis voting right act, etc. Hopefully, they will pass something effective. But for now, it's up to each of us to mind our vote and make sure it is counted.

Your hosts: Michael V. Piscitelli and Raymond Wong Jr.

More info

• The National Archives has a page dedicated to information about the Electors of the Electoral College (sounds like a Bravo faux-reality TV series) including the role and qualifications for people looking to fulfill the duties of an elector, and more. Love our archives, check it out!
• We have transcripts located at the end of each podcast episode's  page on our site. Check it out, but know this: It's all AI and not us. So thank you in advance for forgiving any and all errors.
  
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• Disclaimer: The opinions expressed on this podcast are for listener consideration and are not necessarily those of the show or its sponsors.

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