"Thank you for your thoughts on this matter, I didn't read them. Here is a boilerplate statement espousing all the great things about this bill that you specifically criticized in your message to me. Please don't reach out again."
this post was submitted on 29 Aug 2023
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Everyone insists that writing your representatives works, but neglect to tell you that there's a million other things that keep them from getting things done.
My dad is a member of the local town council. I ask him about maybe making safe sidewalks so his grandkids can visit without needing to drive, he just shrugs and says it will take years to do. His experience in government has really recalibrated what I think government is capable of.
If a local government can't get a hundred yards of sidewalk paved when one of the leaders is pushing for it, how long would it take the federal government to build high speed rail?
I'll share a different story then. Over the past several years, I've participated in a movement to get bus rapid transit lanes which is moving forward. I started as a citizen advocate, then represented the bus company (as an advocate) through several phases of studies, then led a community engagement team in which I personally talked to over a thousand local residents and gave more than a dozen presentations to the community and stakeholders. I've sparred with NIMBYs and congresspersons alike. And now the project is moving forward and will dedicate over a third of a major roadway exclusively to bus service.
Cynicism is crack for slacktivists and keyboard warriors.
Exactly my point. It took one person working that hard for free for months or maybe years to get that done, dragging the government kicking and screaming into a good idea.
That wouldn’t be necessary if our government wasn’t broken.