Short Answer: NO

Unrepresentative Policy of the Week: Are Politicians Working for You

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Last week was: the Iowa caucus, Trump’s state of the union address, Trump’s Republican acquittal in the sham impeachment trial, and the democratic party debate. Quite the whirlwind from a political news perspective. It’s enough to overwhelm nearly anyone with the cacophony of these momentous events, especially considering the direction most of them went. But while history may remember these particular moments as especially noteworthy, they are merely formalized and exaggerated examples of the daily decay occurring in our supposedly representative democracy. The charade, however, is crumbling, and most people in America already understand the reality being laid bare: The politicians running our country today are purposefully pitting Americans against one another based on race and ethnicity. They want us to fight with each other over cultural differences as they pursue policies that transfer wealth and power to the rich and Wall Street. Instead, we need a government that seeks to unite people - regardless of where they live, what they look like, or how much money they have - around simple goals we all share, like basic economic security for our families and a chance to get ahead in life. Yes – 75% No – 13% Americans by and large understand the game that is being played here, and they are sick of it. Every day we are confronted with new horrors, and an, at best, unresponsive, if not outright hostile government to the plights of most Americans. If there has been one benefit to the Trump administration, it’s that he has ripped off the smiling mask most politicians wear, and exposed the cruelty and corruption of the system for all to see. Yet, despite their desires and desperate pleas being ignored, the American people have, for the most part, remained docile. There are doubtless many reasons for relative lack of resistance to the totalitarian direction our society is shifting, but perhaps the greatest is exemplified in the learned helplessness on display from our democratic party representatives. Rarely fighting for anything, negotiating away their positions before getting to the bargaining table, and constantly on the defensive, the epitaph of the Democratic party seems to read “We felt there was nothing we could do.” This is of course preposterous, there is plenty, both they as members of government, and we, as the citizens of this nation can do! We can, and should organize, and educate, we can campaign, and lobby our representatives, but many of these tasks are time intensive an intimidating, but anyone can take a day off from spending. They are also, critically, missing an economic component to exert pressure on the levers of power, and there too DSOT generates that pressure. The members of Congress aren’t just apathetic, they are bought off by powerful and amoral businesses, and special interest groups who vehemently oppose policies created for, and supported by, the American people. If we are to bring democratic representation back to America and make a government by, of and for all of us, we will need to vote in as many competent and brave public servants as possible in the next election, and then put pressure on all our representatives through a broad and enduring movement of people, demanding change. Without such efforts we will see the last remnants of our democracy slip away. Don’t miss this chance to change our country for the better. Join us every Tuesday, in growing solidarity and power until we take back our democracy from amoral special interests, and greedy politicians: Don't Shop on Tuesdays!