Politics Can Be Anything We Want, Even Accountable To Voters

There’s a common belief that you can’t change politics. First, it’s a large, complex system. Second, it’s governed by, on the one hand, greed for power and money, and on the other by voters desires, angers, and fears.

At the same time, most people think our political system needs to change. Most agree about some of the changes, like tighter controls on lobbying, preventing members of Congress from being rewarded by the industries they regulate. Majorities want other changes as well, such as term limits for Congress, and to break the 2-party duopoly.

Should lying to constituents by elected officials be prohibited? How about by candidates and campaigns? (If we prohibit lying, we should define it well, make a special, fast, court for it, and have effective remedies rather than simply penalties. But it could be done.)

Should there be a law about transparency, that all elected officials must keep a public, online log about who they see and what they discuss? Plus what they work on every day? Should all Congressional committees keep a public log of their day-to-day progress? Should voice votes in Congress be eliminated so every member’s vote is known?

If most people think our political system needs changes and citizens hold the ultimate power in a democracy, then why don’t we make changes?

Because all of our efforts happen within the political system. And the political system has evolved to prevent voters from exercising their power.

Plus, it masks certain notions, like accountability. It's central to a working democracy, but its definition is masked by myths like, "we hold officials accountable in elections," and "the media makes officials accountable." How can we have accountability to voters if we can't even define it?

Toni Morrison wrote, in Jazz: 

“If you don't (change it), it will change you and it'll be your fault ‘cause you let it.”

The only thing stopping us is us. We’ve settled for a lousy system. We believe we can’t change it, so we’ve never created a way to organize ourselves to exercise our power. Until now. PeopleCount is that system.