Vote Tuesday! Will your voice be heard?

The Artdog Quote(s) of the Week
In many parts of the USA, Tuesday is Election Day. Do you know who (or what) is on the ballot? Have you done your research? Maybe even already voted, in places that allow advance voting? Good for you! When a 53.4% voter turnout is a record year, a lot of people's voices aren't being heard. Will your voice be heard this year?

For those of you asking, "Wait! There's an election?" shame on you! But it's still (just barely) not too late. Vote Tuesday! Will your voice be heard? Or will you be one of those who roll over with a yawn and fail to show up, then complain that your voice isn't heard?

Excuses aren't hard to find. Will your voice be heard?
Yeah, it's an off-year. No big marquee names (at least, none are marquee names now. Political careers begin with elections like the one we're facing this week). But local elections matter precisely because things that happen locally impact us immediately. But they also are the launch-pad for larger careers.

Case in point: who knew, ten years ago, that anyone outside of South Bend, IN would care who its mayor was? Trust me: Small elections matter. And there's no other place where your vote counts more.

As one-time Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill famously said, "All politics is local." Engrave it on your heart and believe it. Small, local elections matter tremendously. So let your voice be heard!

So. What's on your ballot?
In Johnson County, Kansas, it's an ongoing saga. As you may recall, in August, we voted in a primary to narrow the field of candidates for local races (in Westwood, only the Johnson County Community College Board of Trustees, but it was a battle of progressives versus conservatives, and quite an interesting contest). Tuesday we make the final cuts in that race.

But wait! There's more! We're voting for a Mayor and two City Council Members in Westwood, and the local Shawnee Mission School Board has some hotly-contested races. But possibly the most contentious race is for Water District One.

I'm not kidding: the Water District. Climate change and concerns raised by failures in Flint, MI and Newark, NJ have ignited a very active ballot. Think water isn't important? Try doing without! Yes, Local elections make a big difference to local quality of life. Will you vote? Let your voice be heard!

IMAGE CREDITS: Many thanks to Country Living and "15 Voting Quotes that will Make you Proud to be an American" for the quotes from Thomas Jefferson, Susan B. Anthony, George Jean Nathan, and George Carlin. The quote from Tip O'Neill is courtesy of Jacobs Media Strategy. Thank you very much, to both!

How will women bring governmental change?

Once I started looking for inspirational thoughts from women about women and their place in the world, my problem quickly became deciding which ones I thought were most important to highlight in my remaining time and space.

Today's post features three quote-images from strong women (two from the past, one contemporary) whose names we should recognize. It might be well to consider their words as our dialogue unfolds in the changing political atmosphere of post-2018-midterms USA.

Unfortunately, a focus on diversity, whether in gender/identity, race, or ethnicity, seems to be increasingly concentrated within one particular partisan "corral."

That is, in itself, a problem. If we start assuming that only Democrats elect women (a severe overgeneralization, but it's a growing perception), what good does that do for the overall diversity of debate and philosophy of governance?

It remains to be seen how much an influx of women will change the tenor and focus of politics, whether in the aspirational directions Abzug envisioned or in other ways.

As far as I'm aware, only Nevada's legislature actually mirrors the demographics of the general population, and their new legislative session just opened a month ago. This is early days to see how they'll prioritize. Another state legislature to watch is that of Colorado.

Change may be afoot, but it's incremental. And change, by its very nature, is full of surprises.

IMAGES: Many thanks to Goalcast, for the image featuring Susan B. Anthony and her words; to Black Women's Journal for the Michelle Obama quote-image; and to the ever-invaluable AZ Quotes, for the Bella Abzug quote-image. I deeply appreciate all three!

Three voices from three centuries make an important point

The Artdog Quotes of the Week

Women's History Month is coming to an end soon. Perhaps it's time to make some evaluations, based on the words of strong women from history.

Do you feel well-represented?

How do you think today's political parties measure up, by this standard?

How well do you think our international agreements align with this principle?

These are three different women from three different time periods. But each reminds us that women matter enormously.

I do not believe we can settle for having our needs left unmet in the name of "not the right time," "strategic compromise," or some imagined "greater good" that does not include good for us.

How much of that have you seen in your own life?

IMAGES: Many thanks to AZ Quotes, for the words of Abigail Adams, to Nomadic Politics, for the quote from Susan B. Anthony, and to AZ Quotes once again, for the quote-image featuring the remarkable Afghan leader Fawzia Koofi. Many thanks to all!