Two years since... still not voting

I say without shame that I chose not to vote, again.

When I started this blog 2 years ago I said I was opting out of the political system to invest my energy into something greater. Today I am even more convinced of the fact that any work done by individuals in the community has more power than anything done by a politician in Washington, DC. (Yes, change occurs at the grassroots level, not from the top down.) Why devote any thought to the election of these politicians? Why choose between the lesser of two evils?

Why not plant a community garden instead, or provide housing for the homeless, or spend time with the sick and lonely? Why not speak out against racism, homophobia, bigotry and fear? Do we need an elected leader to show us how to do any of these things?

Across the country there are volunteer driven programs functioning for the improvement of the community, but there are not enough of them. Listen I know you can very well say: Why not vote and do these things?

I ask who has time or energy to work on a garden or spend time with the elderly or work on a housing initiative as well as work a full time job? There is no end to reading political theory, to listening to arguments from pundits and comedians. All that knowledge gathering might make you more informed but it won't help you or your neighbor live more abundantly. I tell you it is easier to form an opinion and vote than it is to build relationships with neighbors and strangers. It is easier to participate with the system (or rail against it) than it is to work for change.

I maintain the better thing is to let go of this idea of representative government. How can politicians in DC write laws which justly apply to the problems of Maine and Alaska, California and Texas, Florida and New York? How can justice be done by individuals who are removed from their home communities by wealth, power and geography?

Instead plant the gardens, enrich the local economy, feed the hungry, and the politicians will follow. Take away their legitimacy by not voting.

President Obama had the first part correct: We are the ones we have been waiting for... The question is why do we need them, the politicians? Why do we even vote for them?

We are the leaders, beyond just the President, more than just the Democratic party, greater than just the Republican party, more diverse than either the Tea Party or the Rally to Restore Sanity/Fear. We the people, all of us, are self-determining.

We have God given and unalienable rights which need no government recognition. So why do we recognize the government which oppresses us? Why do we vote in our oppressors? The government which drives us to war, which taxes us and protects the profits of the wealthy.

Ultimately, the government serves, not the people, but a culture which dehumanizes us. The culture is created by those who have something to gain from the divisions. The culture that calls us poor, minority, uneducated or illegal. Ain't we human regardless of our status as citizen or alien, male or female, rich or poor? It is the culture that limits us and the government that bows to that oppressive culture. Change the culture and the rest will follow.

This is why Jesus and St. Paul said to leave the government alone, obey their laws (as long as they don't prevent you from being compassionate to those in need), give them no reason to persecute you. They will find reason enough when you start to change the status quo. Again the government is only a distraction from the real need.

Look at your local communities and you will see that right now a greenhouse is being readied for the winter growing season. Right now volunteers are visiting the elderly in nursing homes. Right now lunches are being given away free of charge. Right now a homeless person is finding shelter from a stranger. Right now a good Samaritan is taking care of an injured neighbor. Right now the world is being changed; not in the seats of power but by people like us. This is all done by people who are more complex than just liberal, conservative or radical.

You and I are the agents of change. And who voted us into office?

PS Please comment, I post these for discussion sake. Thanks.