Failure to Choose Is a Choice

I've been thinking about this a lot lately and I think I've finally figured out something. I'm sure there are lots of people who, upon hearing my revelation, will respond with, "duh." I am equally sure there are some who have not thought of this - at least not consciously. So, as much to enlighten as to clarify my own thoughts, and perhaps to entertain, I will explain myself.

People are afraid of change - nothing earth-shattering in that statement. Now, you may be one of those people who welcomes change, but I would argue that when faced with difficult choices, you too, will choose what is familiar. Why? Because we are prone to laziness and inertia. We are always looking for the easiest and quickest way to get things done. Making informed decisions takes time and effort. The changes that may come with different choices can be difficult to navigate. We are already accustomed to the status quo, and just because we don't like it doesn't mean we want to figure out something better. Let somebody else do that.

It's one thing to delegate. It's an entirely different thing to abdicate. When faced with a choice, failure to choose is a choice. Allowing someone else to tell you what to choose is a choice. Procrastinating past the point of having options is also a choice. All are cowardly, lazy choices.

It was 1972 and I was in the second grade when my teacher decide to have a mock Presidential election in our class. The candidates: George McGovern and Richard Nixon. In this secret ballot election, we were to check off our choice and give a reason for it. We had learned a bit about each candidate but I doubt that had much bearing on our selections. I can't remember, but I imagine most of what we thought we knew came from our parents. Richard Nixon was the winner, in our class and the real election - the one in which informed adults voted. But were they?

I still remember the reason I voted for Nixon, and I'd be embarrassed except for the fact that I was 7 years old! I wrote something along the lines of, "because he was already President and seemed to do a pretty good job." What did I know about whether he did a pretty good job? Absolutely nothing! I voted for him because he was a known quantity, something not different, something completely lacking change. And I didn't know it at the time, but I'm sure my reasoning was that I hadn't personally suffered as a result of his actions so he must be doing a good job.

What I have come to realize recently is that many (far too many) adults are functioning with a 7 year old mentality when it comes to making choices, and although that's just fine when it only affects them, it is not when it affects all of us. I'm talking about elections, which may not seem to affect us personally, but have profound effects upon the lives of all of us. Choosing wisely is a serious responsibility which I fear is too often treated as another item on a checklist of things to do. Get it done. Get it done. My vote probably won't make a difference anyway.

So we vote for the same candidates time and time again, based on name recognition and fear of the unknown. Maybe we haven't been personally harmed by this candidate, or maybe we don't realize it but we have. Explanations, excuses really, like, "Well, all politicians are crooks anyway," is not a good reason for choosing the same crook. Maybe they're not all crooks, and maybe once they get the message that we will no longer tolerate dishonesty, injustice, inequality, and lethargy, they will change their actions. But we cannot expect from others what we are unwilling to do ourselves. And on a side note, I would like to add that unhappiness with the current situation does not warrant choosing the opposite. For example, voting all Republican or all Democrat just to get the current crooks out of Congress doesn't accomplish anything useful. Each candidate needs to be evaluated for his/her ability and willingness to best represent our interests. Voting for the opposite is just plain lazy and largely misinformed.

So we need to address some vital issues. Are we willing to ask the hard questions, do the research, and stand up for our beliefs? Are we willing to address injustice and inequality when we see it? Are we willing to work for what is right? Do we strive to have integrity in all situations?

Before you start repeating what you have heard others say, as if you know it to be true, research it yourself. Things are seldom defined in black and white. Question everything. Form your own conclusions. Instead of acting from a place of fear, act from a place of knowledge and integrity. If you're happy with the status quo, be able to defend it. If you want change, be willing to define it. When defining what you want, there is no right or wrong, only what is right or wrong for you.

Warning: I'm about to get preachy as I share what I feel is right for me, and naturally I feel this is right for everyone else too because that's my opinion, and the beauty of opinions is that they don't have to be based in fact. I dream of a world where people will actually treat others the way that they would like to be treated. Sometimes we don't know how others prefer to be treated. In those cases, do no harm. Help one another. Consider the feelings of others before you act and try not to judge the actions of others. In short, love one another. I firmly believe in this quote from Corinthians 13:4-8a:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

I'd like to think I may have influenced a few people to put in the effort to create the world they want. Educate yourselves. Define the issues that are important to you and defend them. As for those things which are not important to you and for which you are unwilling to do the work to learn about them, abstain from voting. Don't vote because you feel it's your duty, although it is, and don't vote because someone else told you how to vote, although they will. Simply vote because, in a democracy, your vote matters and, for that reason, you should vote for what matters to you.