Majority big
Image courtesy of Jim Burklo
I hope that this "meme" spreads far and wide for years to come.
The majority isn't always right. But when it is wrong, in a real democracy, it has the potential to see, learn from, and then correct its mistakes. With majority rule, when there is a screw-up (not if, but when), everybody knows who to blame. And then there's "votivation" to fix the screw-up at the voting booth.
New Burklo ident
But when the minority rules - which is far too much the case in this country today - then voters get confused about who to blame. Lately I've been hearing my fellow political progressives blaming Democrats for the failure to get meaningful climate change legislation passed, and for failing to protect abortion rights. If Democrats, who do represent the majority of Americans, were really in charge, these and many other priorities would have been fulfilled. Because the minority is able to block progress, over and over and over again, politics becomes a circular firing squad. As a result, a lot of folks throw up their hands and stop participating in public life. Which of course is exactly what the right-wing minority hopes will happen, so that it can continue to dominate.
We're now face to face, as never before, with the antique nature of our American democratic system. We must build a consensus of citizens to support changes that will assure majority rule. Without these changes, we're in serious danger of losing our democracy altogether.
The majority of people in America want abortion to be safe, legal, and rare. They wanted Roe v. Wade to stand. While the original decision might have had its flaws in terms of legal philosophy, it stood so long that it became "settled law". Even a fair number of conservative analysts recognized that its recent reversal was an outrageous affront to the sanctity of the legal system. This decision, and other recent ones preceding it, and others soon to follow, have trashed the reputation of the Supreme Court, rendering it just another partisan political branch of government. And as we all know from personal experience, once a reputation is in tatters, it's mighty hard to restore it.
So the reversal of Roe v. Wade was therefore a very bad day for democracy in America, which depends not only on laws, but on civic traditions, manners, habits, and the good name of our democratic institutions.
Let there be a national movement to demand majority rule. Whenever it is violated, whenever it is circumvented, let us repeat this mantra: "The majority demands majority rule." We don't just want to preserve the right to abortion - which I believe to be the mother of all rights. We demand the rule by majority that will assure it. We don't just want meaningful action on human-caused climate change. We demand the rule by majority that will deliver it. We don't just want a ban on weapons of mass murder. We demand the rule by majority that will deliver it.
Majority rule means an end to gerrymandering, an end to the Electoral College so that presidents are elected directly at a national level, term limits and nonpartisan appointment processes for judges, and it means maximizing access to voting for all citizens.
Democracy is majority rule - with protections for the civil rights of the minority. Everywhere and always, let's vigorously demand it.