The Saker interviews Joel S. Hirschhorn

After reading the very interesting article by Joel S. Hirschhorn "Time to Boycott Voting" I decided to contact him to ask him some further questions about his controversial point of view. He kindly agreed to answer my questions for which I am most grateful to him
-------

Q: Please introduce yourself, tell us about you, about what you do in life

A: Though I started my professional life in engineering and was a successful professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison,, I moved into public policy, spending 12 years at the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment working mostly on environmental issues and after that about 5 years at the National Governors Association where I was Director of Environment, Energy and Natural Resources. I have testified at over 50 Senate and House hearings and a number of state government hearings. Writing was always my love and when I stopped working a regular job I focused on writing several books, including Sprawl Kills and Delusional Democracy. Now my time is devoted to writing articles that appear on over 100 websites, covering political and government issues. I also co-founded Friends of the Article V Convention at www.foavc.org and that is a very special interest for me. More recently I have become active in the 9/11 truth movement.

Q: Are you not implicitly responsible for whatever outcome an election has if you abstain? Does your *failure to oppose* not make you an accomplice of the policies which are enacted after your abstention?

A: My view is that our current political system is so completely rigged and corrupt that it really does not matter which Democrat or Republican wins a particular election. There comes a time when good citizens must face the ugly truth: that participating in a corrupt and criminal system that no longer obeys the rule of law nor honors our Constitution merely legitimizes this awful system. We have a delusional democracy that is nearly worthless; it serves the interests of a rich, powerful elitist class much more than it serves ordinary citizens. That our voter turnout is so low simply reflects the fact that most Americans see voting as next to useless. Those who think that they can vote our nation out of the current condition are delusional and/or brainwashed. I strongly agree with the Jeffersonian view that we need periodic rebellions to preserve a quality democracy. But now we must use a non-violent approach, which is extremely difficult because the mainstream media are part of the problem because of corporate ownership. Moreover, the power elites have engineered a culture and society that makes most citizens distracted, tired and sick consumers -- too busy and too exhausted to be truly engaged with their democracy. Intentional civil disobedience with a political reform goal is very different than merely being too distracted, busy or tired to vote.

Q: You mention Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich. If they decided to join forces and run in the name of, say, a "Jeffersonian Party" whose platform would only be to 1) stop all wars of aggression 2) restore all civil rights mentioned in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights - would you consider voting in for such a ticket?

A: Yes, I must admit I would; I have always been a very strong advocate for third parties. The problem is that the two major parties have succeeded in rigging our political system to make it nearly impossible for third party candidates to win federal elections. And the media don't help at all, because they want simple horse races to keep the public watching and listening, and to make tons of money from the two big parties.

Q: You say that Ron Paul or Dennis Kucinich will not be nominated by their respective political parties. But does voting for them not send a strong message to the party leaders about what people want? Imagine Ron Paul coming in third or even second at the Republican Convention. Would that not be an earthquake for the GOP?

A: Again, these kind of populist, minor candidates keep people that are rightfully fed up with our political system engaged. Their supporters are no threat whatsoever to the big parties and their candidates. Most people are terribly ignorant about our political system and how the major parties operate. Their conventions are tightly controlled. I am sickened by the delusional state of the supporters of Paul most of all; they really do not seem to understand how rigged and corrupt the two-party system is. They are wasting their time, energy and money - BUT I fully understand and support their zeal. In the end, they will accomplish nothing, and then what?

Q: If not the big parties, how about voting for, say, Nader? If he got enough votes, would that not rock the boat enough to make the US politicians pay attention?

A: In every election where he was on my ballot I voted for him. Intellectually and in terms of policy he has been about the best presidential candidate we have had in many decades, but he is no politician, so he never stood a chance. And he was falsely and illogically blamed for Bush's victory.

Q: Say that people follow your advice and massively abstain. What do you imagine the reaction of the political elites would be to such an event? Do you really expect them self-dissolve themselves and leave the political scene with contrite hearts? Why could they not simple ignore it and vote some money to increase "civic education in schools"?

A: They would never easily give up their power, but neither could they ignore a very low voter turnout. They have managed to hoodwink the populace in so many ways. But if the turnout dropped to 25 percent or lower the situation would be profoundly different. Our political system, president and government would have absolutely no credibility on the world scene; it could not be ignored. In a marvelous and strange way I think reaching that extremely low voter turnout would trigger a massive, populist rebellion among Americans. The delusional democracy would no longer have any credibility and could not survive; key parts of society would become activist and engaged - civil disobedience CAN WORK! People should think in terms of a tipping point - when the vast majority of Americans clearly reject their political system, politicians and major parties.

Q: Assuming that a huge amount of people abstaining did rock the boat enough and the system would be in a crisis, how would then a reform come from people who are nowhere represented in the political system or, if you prefer, how could abstainers make sure that they voice is heard and, even more relevantly, that their voice would matter?

A: I envision many possible events, including popular support for constitutional amendments achieved through the nation's first Article V convention; the main goal would be major reforms that loosen the grip of the two major parties and open the system up to third party candidates. A number of electoral reforms would be used to greatly increase voter turnout; for example, making Election Day a national holiday and making voting mandatory, as it is in many democracies. One or both major parties would undergo massive self-reforms to regain public trust. We have to think in terms of a successful Second American Revolution, from which new honest, high quality leaders emerge.

Joel S. Hirschhorn is the author of Delusional Democracy – Fixing the Republic Without Overthrowing the Government that presents many electoral and other reforms; he can be contacted through www.delusionaldemocracy.com . Formerly, he was a senior official at the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment and the National Governors Association.

Time to Boycott Voting

By Joel S. Hirschhorn

After many years of political disappointment, more progressives, liberals and conservatives – and certainly moderates and independents – know in their hearts that voting for Democrats or Republicans is a waste. Just imagine if voter turnout was cut to 25 percent or less! Let the whole world see Americans boycotting a broken and corrupt political system and rejecting what has become a delusional democracy. To keep voting in an unjust political system makes us willing political slaves that the rich and powerful elites exploit.

Just leaving the major parties is not good enough and, besides, most Americans are not party members. We need a bolder strategy. We must humiliate the political elites in both major parties and the corporate interests that support both of them. We can send a shock wave throughout the political establishment by not voting in the 2008 presidential election.

Stop playing THEIR game. Take back control. Take back YOUR nation. Time to boycott voting. This strategy is consistent with the thinking of Gandhi and King: peaceful resistance to political tyranny that can bring the corrupt system to its knees. Ultimately, the most effective protest is through civil disobedience – to visibly and stubbornly refuse to respect what has become a corrupt, untrustworthy system. Before it can be fixed it must be deconstructed and then rebuilt. Taxation with MISrepresentation means we need a Second American Revolution; it must begin – not with violent action – but with massive withdrawal by citizens that have seen the light. We have a good head start with about half of eligible voters already so turned off that they don’t vote. Obviously that has not been sufficient to change the system.

There will be negative, defensive knee-jerk reactions to this audacious strategy. Let’s examine them:

Many will think that taking such action violates our responsibility as citizens. But taking that responsibility seriously as engaged citizens in the Jeffersonian sense must reflect that there is still a valid contract between citizens and their government. When we vote we have the right to a political system that respects we the people and gives us an authentic representative democracy. We have a right to a constitutional republic operating under the rule of law. But we have elected representatives that no longer have the public interest as their primary commitment, nor truly honor and respect our Constitution.

They have been corrupted by corporate and other special interests that fund their campaigns to get the laws, loopholes and largesse they want. They have been corrupted by power and the perks of office. They are political cowards and mostly intellectual midgets. The two major parties have a stranglehold on our political system that no longer merits our participation in their crooked game. Political parties are not part of our Constitution and the two-party duopoly has demonstrated that both Democrats and Republicans put their own interests above those of we the people, our nation and our democracy. We cannot vote our way out of our current, dreadful political system.

Whether you are on the political left or right, you will fear that not voting will help put in office people that support policies your abhor. But decades of objective political reality tell us that even people from the party that we align with do not, when elected, fulfill their promises and our hopes. Sadly, most Americans have become lesser-evil voters, deluding themselves that this is the best, least worse, yet awful choice. Instead of feeling bad about voting for candidates that we know in our hearts are not worthy of our votes and public office, we must have the courage to say “enough is enough; I will not play in this shameful game any longer.” We must stop legitimizing and abetting our disgraceful government.

Many may fear that not voting sets a terrible example to children. But isn’t it more important to tell America’s children that true patriotism must reveal itself by rejecting a political system that no longer merits respect? Thomas Jefferson believed in periodic rebellion. Now is the time for all good Americans to come to the rescue of their nation, peacefully by boycotting elections.

The small number of third party members may be screaming: yes, don’t vote for Democrats and Republicans; come over and join us! I have been a strong third party supporter, but we must face the painful truth. The two major parties have so rigged the political system in their favor and against third parties that voting for third party candidates for federal office is a futile action. We must first boycott voting to create sufficient pressure to open the system to genuine political competition. That requires a number of electoral reforms, possible if the nation gets its first Article V convention (see www.foavc.org). With reforms we can increase voter turnout to over 90 percent, as routinely seen in other democracies.

False patriotism may cause some to think that we must not show anti-American nations and terrorists that our government no longer has the trust of its citizens. But that has already been widely disseminated by endless polls and surveys, including the recent Zogby poll that found a record-low 11 percent support for Congress. Better to show our enemies that we the people have finally awakened and decided to re-assert our sovereignty and restore American democracy. Loyalty to country, yes; loyalty to government, no. Our populist American insurgency must begin with a boycott of voting.

Proof that this extraordinary strategy can work is that by now diehard Democrats and Republicans reading this are squirming in discomfort. So spread the word, if you have not deluded yourself about voting the nation into a far, far better place. Time to boycott voting. Join the picket line; admit that none of the above is the only rational decision when the choices the two major parties give us for federal officials are not worth a dime.

Voting in a delusional representative democracy is as harebrained as voting even though you know votes will not be honestly counted – which many fear may be true. We may have lost control of our government, but we still control our voting. Time to walk away from the brainwashing and fiction that it really matters which Democrat or Republican you vote for in primaries and general elections for federal office. Power elites want us to believe that. They collude with the corporate mainstream media that make tons of money from campaigns and want you to stay glued to suspenseful horse races. Loud-mouth political pundits that narrate the races are democracy’s enemies. We must stop watching and listening to the political entertainment designed to keep us obediently mesmerized, as if the game is honest. Without an audience, these phony races and media circus will disappear.

Don’t be fooled by the large number of candidates in the Democratic and Republican presidential primaries. It is a sham – a scheme to keep spectators glued to the illusory competition. Ron Paul has as much chance of being the Republican nominee as Dennis Kucinich has of being the Democratic nominee. With power elites controlling both major parties, zero chance for them and the other minor candidates, regardless of their grassroots support. Reflect on how both major parties accept lots of candidates in televised debates in the primary season. But come the general election with prime time televised presidential debates they keep out third party candidates that desperately need that exposure to rally meaningful support. Such is the hypocrisy and disdain of the two-party duopoly.

Come Election Day in 2008 we should party and celebrate (with TVs turned off) our populist boycott of voting and enjoy the camaraderie of fellow patriots. We must help them resist any late urge to vote, because by then millions of dollars will be spent by many special interests to make us feel guilty and ashamed if we do not vote. I can hear Paul Revere now: The liars are coming! The liars are coming! All that advertising and pundit-screaming to herd us back into the voting booths will verify that our boycott strategy works.

With having the votes of only a small minority of the electorate, whoever becomes president will have no public mandate except major, systemic political reforms that satisfy the will of the people. Either that or accept being the president of a fake democracy on the world scene.

Be brave. Stick together. Save voting for a reformed political system worthy of respect and participation.

Joel S. Hirschhorn is the author of Delusional Democracy – Fixing the Republic Without Overthrowing the Government that presents many electoral and other reforms; he can be contacted through www.delusionaldemocracy.com . Formerly, he was a senior official at the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment and the National Governors Association.