Just Thinkin’ -
Who is entitled to vote? Well, it depends on who is drafting the definition. In so many questions of this nature we like to turn to our Constitution and, most often, that is a dandy guide. We ask, “What did our Founding Fathers mean?” However, when it comes to voting that might not be the question we want to ask.
I have to remind myself of a favorite question, a question I take pleasure in quoting. Why? It seems to fit so many of our political quandaries. You know we do get ourselves into some interesting situations as we try to apply some whack-a-doodle theory in an effort to find a government solution to a social ill.
Ah, the question. As Benjamin Franklin was leaving the Constitutional Convention of 1787, Elizabeth Willing Powell inquired, “What kind of government have you given us?”
Franklin replied, “A republic if you can keep it.”
Exactly where and when and who among us decided that founders gave us not a republic, but a democracy, I’m unclear.
So, about that voting thing. According to our Founding Fathers, you could vote if you were a white male. I understand that a number of the attendees to the Constitutional Convention believed that was too inclusive and that the vote should be restricted to educated landowners who, by the way, owned a few other things.
When it comes to determining who can vote, I rather agree with a principle put forth by Albert Einstein, “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.”
As our concept as to whether we are a republic or a democracy has evolved, who may vote has expanded. The Post-Civil War inclusion of black males. It was the early 20th Century, and after a long and bitter fight, that women’s suffrage was secured. Despite rumors spread by the youth in my family, I was not involved in this movement.
But things change. I was 21 years old before I was first eligible to vote. The age requirement was moved to 18 only because the draft age was 18.
What beautiful fall weather. I have been sitting on my porch watching how the squirrels operated their democracy in my backyard. It hit me, you elect the wrong people, be it republic or democracy, they can take it away from you. Be it democracy or republic, it is frail, requiring protection, attention and nurture.
Oklahomans will vote dry as long as they can stagger to the polls. – Will Rogers
