I need help making a real difference...

[jbm]

Awhile back I posted a story about how some of the people that work with me at a local restaurant had questions about politics. (The original story is at this link if you want to see it..)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=425619

Anyway,last saturday one of the waitresses came up to me and said,"tonight after we close I want you to explain politics to me..I want to learn". Again I had an audience,and it must have gone ok because when we left another waitress said,"we need to do this every saturday night until the election". That was encouraging,but the thing is,the 'after work' environment with so many people and so many questions only allows for brief answers and explanations that are so lacking in context that people leave looking more confused then they do informed. I thought what I would do instead is write a series of short essays and bring one to work with me every weekend. I really think they would read them,but I'm wondering if some of you might have some suggestions.

I figured I would just start at the beginning,and try to demystify the words 'government' and 'politics'. I'm thinking I'd write about how people lived in groups in order to survive,and that as those groups evolved,we gradually developed a system of laws and methods of distributing the resources and that overtime the systems became more complex. I thought I would tell them that there has been an ongoing struggle since the beginning to balance the needs of the group with the needs of the individual,and that the opposing ideologies seemed to have evolved to protect these two facets of human nature. I'm thinking if I elaborate on those points,that might be enough for the first night,but I'm looking for input on whether or not you guys think this might be an effective strategy,and what other suggestions you might have for future essays.

I should probably add here that there are a couple of people there who aren't politically involved,but are very fudamentalist conservative type personalities,so I have to be a little careful or I'm afraid I'll lose them.

I won't have a chance to look in on this thread again till tomorrow,so I appreciate in advance any help you can provide. Thanks! :)

[No2W2004]

1. Why Not

ask them to write some questions down that they have, and post them on DU so we can all help?

[blm]

2. Try this site. It has helped many looking to educate

others, even conservatives. It will guide you to common ground and concerns rooted in the Constitution.

www.americalivefree.org

[Don_G]

3. Do What You Can When You Can Do It

If anyone or everyone else has a complaint, then "ask" how much are the taxes are going up in my state or why the asshole won't answer "questions" in black-and-white unless he has a six-week "lead" time.

How do you feel about this BS?

[kentuck]

4. Relate politics to their own lives....

How much money do they make? Do they have good health care? Do they feel optimistic about their future? Is it important that they and their kids have clean air to breathe and clean water to drink? Do they want their children to go to war when they grow up? And if so, what do they want them to give up their lives for?

How do they want our country to get along or to be perceived by the rest of the world? Is it important one way or another? What do they think about the low prices at Walmart? Would they feel the same way if they lost their job because Walmart decided to buy their products from China instead of the American company?

Politics affects us all. Nowadays, more than ever in our history. What do they think of corporations that pay no taxes at all? Would they feel the same way if they knew they had to pay more in taxes because corporations did not pay their fair share?

[LynzM]

6. I totally agree on this point

While I think your explanations about how politics are evolved are important, I think you need to start with some Q&A and really reach into how things affect their lives, personally. This helps motivate people to want to get/stay involved, if they know it will affect them. I've seen it personally happen with several people where I work; indeed, it seems to be the only thing that reaches through the Repub/Dem debate- speak to what matters in their lives, and then go on to how they can get involved, what rights they have, what they can do to effect change...

Awesome for you for doing this, btw!! :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[BostonTeaParty04]

5. to get the most bang for your buck....

Give them the essays on, say, Thursdays, and then have a discussion about them on Saturday. You really, really do want to have person to person contact. Reading material? If they read, they wouldn't be in the dark!

I like the way your are starting out ... "in the beginning...."

and then the sat before the election, you can play Morrison's "This is the end..." (just kidding... lol)

You know what really made politics and government REAL to me? It was studying and understanding the Federal Agencies.

If you don't understand that.. then you don't even get a feel for the importance of who is secretary of dept of Justice... or health and human services. And you darned sure don't get a clue about what the senate confirmation hearings are about. And you don't sure don't get a clue about the importance of a congressional hearing or inquiry is....

Also, you might even want to visit a local college and talk to a govt professor for some guidance. S/he might be so enthused that s/he might give you some dandy handouts they are used for classes!

Oh, and please make really NICE copies of the US Constitution for them to keep (for Hanging....) with the declaration of indepdence. Oh and highlight the bill of rights.


Shoot.. stop me.... I would really burn these people out. LOL I was thinking...oh, there's this great book on Madison that details his ideas and concerns when the constitution was being crafted....

Lastly, maybe some DUers would be happy to write some essays on various topics, particularly IF you took burning questions from your co-workers....

Lordy... you should start a meet up for this.... teaching CIVICS to our neighbors!!!!

[calimary]

7. It sounds like you should be getting a course together for

a school. REALLY appreciate the thought you're putting into it, and the consideration of your audience. I had to speak to my kid's 6th grade class about "Fact Versus Opinion" and I realized I had to be VERY responsible and not overtly partisan. Just present the facts. Make sure there are things you can document - throw in a reference source or cite some article that maybe one or two of these inquiring souls might want to look up later. You NEVER know. You're a Johnny Appleseed now. Time to sow some!

Is there a coffee shop or some place nearby where you could gather for coffee or tea before calling it a night? The little write-up is a great idea but I'd recommend that it not replace the human-to-human touch. YOU have evidently said something, or behaved in such a way that they began to view you as a "sage" who knows stuff and better yet is approachable about it. And being able to give them something to look at and refer to and take away from your discussion is QUITE thoughtful, thorough, and rawther professional.

When I talked to that class, I felt it was important to comment on many things, and compare and contrast different political approaches. When the topic of republicans came up, I mentioned that the basic, conventional "Republican" thought includes things like smaller government and keeping out of people's private lives; ideas that are NOT all that disreputable. But they get twisted all out of shape by...

You get the idea.

I mean, you're proposing a start at the beginning, identifying, organizing, and examining basic concepts upon which all this other stuff is built. You'd really be helping them to process and "grok" this stuff systemically, and see how the ideas behind the blather operate in the real world. For example, I'm still waiting to see people start to take the initiative about some movements and ideas that have been demonized and otherwise steeped in negativity, that really are unassailable. It's like the term "liberal" - "oh yeah? Well guess what benefits we've gotten from liberals? Guess what liberals have brought about that you like and want and expect, every day? Or the reasoning behind "taxes" - did you ever stop to think WHAT exactly those taxes are going to fund? What specifically does that tax money do? It's like when you hear somebody sounding off about how awful unions are. Well, whatever. But anybody ever tell you WHY we had to have unions in the first place? The perspective almost NEVER gets kicked around. And it's essential!!

What a cool thing you're doing! The very fact that you HAVE these concerns and considerations already outfits you rather smartly for this project. You therefore will be far more likely, instinctively, to explain something in a respectful way that does not cast judgments or aspersions on some of those "fundamentalist conservative type personalities" who may be listening to you. Nor are you likely to alienate them, or any other impressionable listener who might judge what you say in context with how you're saying it or how rudely or aggressively you push. You'll be a breath of fresh air. You'll be enabling an informed voter. You'll be encouraging the exchange of information and the spreading of truth. You'll be debunking all kinds of lies and misconceptions. You'll be doing a public service. Mongo impressed!

It's like Buckminster Fuller, I think, once said - about the idea of the trim-tab. A trim-tab (not sure if that's the correct way to write it) is a little bitty moving piece on the edge of a rudder - that drives a very large boat. To turn the boat this big requires a big effort. So, easiest way to start is to adjust the angle of the trim-tab along the edge of the rudder. THAT, in turn, moves the rudder, and THAT, then, turns the boat. The difference, when it came to turning that big boat all came down to that little bitty trim-tab.

Guess what? You're a trim-tab!

What a cool thing! And it only takes one...

[jbm]

8. Thanks for the great replies!!

I really appreciate the thoughtful posts,the links and the suggestions. You guys are great! :)

[blm]

10. We all appreciate what you are doing.

Thank YOU.

[bobbieinok]

9. It's awesome that you are trusted enuff that people are asking you

for help.

It sounds like a wonderful story that I might read and then say that it would never happen in the real world.

Best of luck.

Please report back periodically - like maybe after every weekly meeting, if you have the time/energy.

[bobbieinok]

11. kick

:kick: :kick: