Sunday, February 26, 2017

Our Civic Duty: Becoming More Actively Involved

So many of us are more aware of politics and the impact they have on us now than we have ever been before.  Seeing Donald Trump become President of the United States while having less of the popular vote has sparked a greater level of care and concern toward our government than I've ever personally witnessed.  There are various reasons people are feeling more compelled to take action and create change in our current politics.  Navigating the path to understanding which actions to take with the little time you have available can be a challenge.

I have been an active voter for 20 years now.  In the past I would conduct some light research for a couple of weeks just prior to voting on the candidates and issues.  Each time that I would open up the ballot information packet, I would wish I had been more diligent to inform myself more thoroughly on many of the topics.  In the last month I've been highly motivated to learn which actions I can take to create the change I want to see and how to balance the time it takes to do so with all of my other commitments.  I've come up with an approach that is working well.

I have found how I can make an impact in just a couple of hours per week.  In this short period of time, I've learned a lot in the quest to optimize the amount of time I want to dedicate toward this.  This will be an ongoing development, but I love how this is working so far. :)  Here are my tips:

Pay Attention 
With all of the political events happening in the past few months, I've genuinely taken a much deeper level of interest in informing myself.  I am paying attention to the current issues as well as taking great care on vetting the sources I consume.

  • Start tuning into credible political news sources and stay informed on current issues
    • Focus on the non-biased, well-vetted sources (examples: NPR, PBS News Hour, The Economist)
    • Select some sources with a minimum bias level and look at both sides to have the full picture in mind (examples:  Left - New York Times, News Week, Washington Post; Right - Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Foreign Affairs)
    • Of the sources selected, tune into them in the way you enjoy most - such as on TV,  Facebook, Twitter, Podcasts, and/or the radio
    • Be sure to weed out sources that are proven as extremely biased and/or with reporting that is not highly factual (examples:  Info Wars, Daily Kos, Breitbart)
Time I spend per week on this:  About 1-2 hours (20 minutes/day)


Form Opinions About the Issues
It is very common for people to focus on reinforcing the beliefs we already have.  If we all continue to do so, we will become more and more polarized.  We need to find common ground.  Learning about the concerns of those with opposite beliefs and/or discussing the issues in a way they can relate to is critical to making progress.  
  • Identify the issues that mean the most to you - write a list
  • From your list of issues, rate each - 1 being the most important to you personally
  • Research both sides of your most important issue and keep building your knowledge around it
Time I spend per week on this:  N/A - this happens during research


Speak Up to Elected Officials
This is one of the least appealing but most important actions you can take.  Let your elected officials know what's important to you and why.  Hold your Members of Congress (MoC's) accountable to represent your position in their votes.  They do monitor overall quantity of contacts by topic.  Calls have been shown as the most effective way to get their attention.  There are tools that make this very simple to do and save a lot of time.
  • Use "5 Calls" App to prompt you on current issues and connect you right to the people who vote on them - I make two calls a week for 1-2 minutes each regarding the two issues most important to me
  • Use "Countable" App to read a neutral view of current issues and send messages to your MoC's - I do this in 10 minutes on Sunday afternoon

Whether you call or write, be effective by framing your message with the following information:
  • I am a constituent and voter in (specific district they represent you in or your city, state)
  • Important fact about the issue (why it concerns you)
  • Specific request (what specific action you are requesting they take)
Time I spend per week on this:  15 minutes


Join a Group
If you feel so inclined, you can also join a group. There are many groups out there of all types. They vary on issues, positions, activity types, level of commitment, etc. I have recently found one that works very well for my needs. We have meetings about once per month to come together to educate ourselves and plan actions. I love this group because I learn a lot and I also enjoy having connections with and support from like-minded individuals.

There are a lot of Facebook groups that are private where you can connect with others who align with you on key issues and speak freely about them. These groups can be very encouraging to plan on steps forward as well as share information. If you're interested in joining something like this, ask your friends that are active politically or search to find one.

Time I spend per week on this:  1 hour

Talk with Others
Having conversations with each other is also important.  One of our biggest challenges is that many people that are eligible to vote, don't.  People aren't sure who to trust and are largely uninformed on what is happening.

We have to encourage friendly conversations where we can genuinely learn from each other.  When we cast judgment against others as being wrong or don't really listen because we're so focused on wanting to say our opinion, that gets us nowhere.  If we all get overly up tight when people disagree with us and can't communicate why issues matter so much to us, how will we ever create bridges and find some common ground to build upon?

We each have a duty to contribute toward making this country what we believe it should be.  If you aren't contributing, then please consider doing so in a way that works for you.

What do you do to contribute to change that you think should happen?  I would love to hear what's working for you.

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