Our Shared Air Makes Us Better
The constant joke in Georgia is that ‘At least, we’re not Alabama!’, but sometimes those jokes are based in reality.
When it comes to politics, we make it better for the people… as in ‘We the People’. One of the rights every citizen has is to petition their government for redress of their grievances. That’s really a fancy term for lobbying. You, as a Citizen, have the right to tell your representatives and elected officials what policies you think ought be carried out and you have the right to do it in person.
Alabama, however, makes that difficult. Never have I visited a state with more intense security measures to impair a citizen from having an off the cuff conversation with their elected officials. Security is everywhere and specifically blocks the entrances to the offices of those holding Constitutional positions.
Most people, however, want to make direct appeals to their legislature. Alabama again however, makes this tough. First, their legislature does not even meet in the Capitol, despite having very nice legislative chambers. Instead, for the past 20 years, they have met in a separate State house. What makes this truly frightening is that each chamber is hermetically sealed. Legislators don’t even breath the same air as their constituents in the gallery! Further, the entrance and exit from the Chambers are in a secure area where the public is not allowed to go.
Contrast this with Georgia’s Capitol! There is security to get into the building and there are security officers, but once inside, all citizens have the chance to meet and talk with the folks who run our state. The Governor, Secretary of State, and Attorney General all have their offices in the Capitol. They all have to use public entrances and exits.
The legislature also meets in the Capitol and they do it in beautiful open air rooms that allow citizens very easy access to the folks casting the votes. It may seem silly some, but this likely makes for better laws.
If you have to directly face the people concerned with the issues on which you vote just prior to and just after the vote, you’re going to think harder about that vote. Vox populi will be more important than vox party. And you have to breath the same air as everyone else.