Who Votes Who Cares

Yesterday was the big anti SOPA PIPA black out day. Many companies shut down or at least hosted banners and other signage to show their opposition to the new ideas in online privacy protection. We citizens were encouraged to contact our representatives and let our voices be heard.

Sounds like a nice plan right?

Living here in Sacramento county and being a homeschool mom we have toured the capital more than once, I do not like to think that I am clueless about the political and legislative process. I went to an event this month attended by the Mayor of Folsom. Still I was not sure what district I am living in. I vote by mail after all the moving I have done in the last few years.

Before this when my daughter was pre school aged I worked at State Net doing data entry for two or three years. The text we worked with came from the United States legislatures. Legislation would come in from various states. It would be scanned and up loaded. We worked on fixing the up loads that did not scan well. It was a data entry job that could either be hours of copious typing or the tedium of nit picking through pages with very few errors for the minor imperfections that might occur.

The last time I contacted a representative was in relation to California being only one of two states that out laws ferrets as pets. Despite the oddities there are exciting things to really love about this nation and how it is structured politically. We citizens can suggest an idea for a law and present it before those who vote on such things. How many of us ever take advantage of this fact?

The teen had a friend over yesterday and I was explaining to them how laws have been created in their life time that are now just taken for granted. Things like wearing seat belts or certain miscreants having to...check in with certain entities or not being able to live in certain areas.

Rules and laws that did not exist or at least not in the extent they do now when I was growing up. The girls just looked at me. We went from there to talking about the other ways people are ignorant about the law. We have so many rights we do not understand and thus fail to take advantage of.

The potential for action and conversation is endless. I hope people are staying aware and informed. I was happy to see members of congress standing with the people on the anti bill issue.

Just a bill