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Submitted by lawnboy on Tue, 11/27/2007 - 9:49pm.
I know what I say here will mean very litle but TJ is the only one that ever came to my door and asked me what I thought about anything! And I was born and raised here, 53 years ago. I was taught that people we elect went to the body that they were elected to to pass on my (our) ideas. Not thier own, but the idea/opinion that the folks that elected them voiced. Who gives a spit about what the person thinks? The only job of the elected person is to voice/vote the opinion of the folks one represents. Not the ideals of the representative him/herselfe. Why is this idea so hard for political people to understand? We don't vote for you to do what you want to do, we vote for you to do what we want you to do. What part of this idea don't you understand? You are to represent us! Not You! I like to think there is no grey area here. Yet it seems that the realality is just the opposite. Vote for me and I'll do as I please, you just got me elected! A funny thing is that now they (city council) gets more cash for a part time job than lots of folks make for really working!
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Representative democracy v. substituted judgment
Submitted by Mike on Wed, 11/28/2007 - 6:50am.I think there has always been the question about whether an elected representative is supposed to "represent" his or her constituents or whether the elected rep is expected to use their judgment on votes on the premise that they were elected for their judgment. There is a natural tension between these different ways of representing others. An elected official who uses their judgment too often where said judgment does not align with popular sentiment of their constituency risk early retirement.
I think the model that makes sense is the one that I have TJ use where he definitely makes an effort to maintain contact and listen with his constituency, understands what popular sentiment desires, and also listens to the "small inner voice" of conscience.
Following a mob mentality and popular sentiment, especially when popular sentiment is manipulated and exploited by sophisticated means, has the capacity to produce really terrible public policy. Case in point: number of lives and dollars being traded in Iraq to find and make safe the weapons of mass destruction that Saddam was threatening us with.