It's official now. I'm a Democrat. I know what you're saying. Yes, I have been a Democrat forever. But now I'm an official Democrat. Let me explain.
I now live in Huntsville, Alabama -- a very different place than Pike County, Georgia. You might think of Alabama as backwards (uh...yeah) but Huntsville isn't. And Pike County is. Even though it's in Georgia and close (as the crow flies) to Atlanta.
There was a time when I was Chairman of the Democratic Party of Pike County.
There's no claim to fame there. It was a job nobody else wanted but it
needed doing. Anyway, we all took one look at the bylaws for a county
Democratic party and tossed them aside. I'm not sure any of us even
knew who lived in what county district but we knew for sure we didn't
have enough people to fill the slots. We had a Chair, a Vice-Chair and a
Secretary/Treasurer and that was it.
I'm telling you all this
because you might want to be a Democrat. And you might live in a county
that needs a Democratic Party formed because nobody has organized one.
Rest assured, you are not alone. You might live in a county where
people whisper when they talk about being a Democrat. But no matter
where you live, there's another Democrat living there. You might not
have enough Democrats to fill up a Volkswagen Beetle but, if you have the courage and the will, you can start a county party.
The
Democratic Party is organized around counties. In Huntsville, Alabama
that county is Madison. After a little floundering around, I found my
way to a meeting of the Democratic Party of Madison County
(Alabama). I told them I wanted to join and they handed me a form to
run for office. But I don't want to run for office. I just want to
join the Party. Turns out, they actually go by those bylaws I had
ignored all those years ago. (You can read the bylaws here.)
To get on the Madison County Democratic Executive Committee (aka, join the Party) you have to run for one of the seats in the county district where you live.
(By the way, if you ever hear "Mac Deck" in Huntsville's Democratic
circles, you'll now know they are referring to the the Madison County
Democratic Executive Committee: MCDEC.)
Getting elected wasn't
much more than a formality but there are only so many seats in each
district of the county so that might not always be the case. But that
is how you "join" the Democratic Party. Now, before you rush in, you
might want to check on the duties of members. That would be Article II,
Section 3, Duties of Members.
Okay, I might have been a little
flippant when I said I tossed the bylaws aside in Pike County. We
couldn't comply with the portion that said we had to fill up more seats
than we had members but I paid attention to the rest of them. I'm a
rule-follower. So I learn the rules.
Why?
Isn't it obvious? Donald Trump is going to be the Republican Party nominee (barring some miracle). It's always been important that you become involved in the affairs of your county. That's the price of democracy. You should be involved in a county party (Democratic, Republican or otherwise.) You should show up to the County Commission meetings. But you don't. I know because I have. And now I will do it again.
Trump is not an unknown quantity. You know what he is capable of and you know he'll be better at it this time because of what he learned last time. Democracy is on the line. He may say he only wants to be a "dictator for a day" but that's just another lie in his blizzard of lies.
I cannot sit on the sidelines and watch this man destroy America's democracy. I won't. I hope you'll join me because, God knows, we need you. (If you click on that link to our website and explore a little, you'll see how much needs to be done.) You might wish there was another way. You might wish this would all just go away. There isn't. And it won't.
The Greatest Generation didn't want to fight World War II. Most wished Hitler would just go away. (Don't kid yourself, many other Americans admired Hitler.)
Nobody wants to be called upon to do the difficult -- to make a sacrifice. Yet here we are. A difficult task is before us and it will require a sacrifice. Your only consolation is that it won't be as difficult as what will come should we fail.
There is no other way. Donald Trump is not going away. Neither are his followers. You may not be excited about Joe Biden (even if I am) and you may not even like Joe Biden (even if I do) but that doesn't matter. If you support Trump, you support the United States of America becoming more authoritarian. At best -- at best -- an illiberal democracy.
More likely -- at the end of four years -- a dictatorship. (Trump is old. He is not the end game. It's the people left in charge, after him, you should fear.)
If you think comparisons with Hitler are over the top and comparisons with Victor Orban are too vague, then try this one on for size. Imagine an election between Jimmy Carter and George Wallace. Who would you choose? There are a lot of Americans that would choose George Wallace. Still. Even though they know Jimmy Carter was (and is) the better man. (It's shorthand but, that right there, is the difference between Alabama and Georgia -- Wallace and Carter.) You can sit back and let those people win or you can get involved and make sure America picks the better man.
It will require courage.
Don Brown
February 26, 2024
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