It’s a fabric filled with senators, congress members, presidents, governors, and all of us. Of all the essential textural millions of threads, I believe small and large town mayors and community boards are the most important. They are the most direct conduit by which millions of Americans can affect and keep our voices heard.

Democracy works from the ground up; dictatorships work from the top down. Voting is our cumulative voice that presses our Politian’s buttons. For the most part, a dictatorship is an overachieving person’s narcissistic singular demand that dictates how you live and breathe. 

We need to get more involved in the dilemma that forces our politicians to compromise the values and standards we believe work for all of us, not special interests. For example, when older people must choose between food and medication, how do our officials effectively mitigate the problem. When we also need prison reform, pandemic assistance, and drug rehabilitation, and at the same time, pay attention to our growing educational needs. How do we citizens pick and choose solutions with limited funds and resources? 

My hometown of Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, is bursting with growth and all the problems it brings. In my eleven years here, we’ve experienced increased crime rates, traffic jams, and a shortage of schools and ambulance services. When North Mt. Juliet Rd. was finally increased from a two-lane road to a four-lane one, the traffic got worse instead of better. Infrastructure planning and updates did not keep up with growth. 

Several years ago, our 55 and older community was facing a dilemma that would compromise the lifestyle we bought into when we moved here. One thousand fifty-four homes were built here, with a clubhouse that holds about 180 people and an indoor and an outdoor pool accommodating a modest number of residents. The development builder convinced the mayor and our town representatives that it would greatly benefit Mt. Juliet if they built another 500 Del Webb homes adjacent to our area. However, the developer wanted these 500 homes, which would house between 700-800 residents, to use all our existing facilities.

Our politicians had to choose between us and a prominent builder’s influence, excessive growth, increased traffic, extra ambulance services, and unsafe access to entrances and exits, when development took precedence in Mt. Juliet. 

Over 200 Del Webb residents rallied at a town hall meeting, met with our elected and appointed representatives, and vehemently protested this intrusion into our lifestyle. Our representatives listened to us and came up with a strategic compromise. If our developer built a separate entranceway, additional roads, and improved infrastructure, they would approve it; the cost would have been about two million dollars. That was the last we heard about this expansion. 

Previously we even had to fight for that fire station and ambulance. When you have a community of 55 and older residents, these services can mean the difference between life and death. Five extra minutes in responding to a heart attack victim can be a death sentence. 

The sooner firefighters arrive, the sooner they can save lives. The sooner our police department can respond, the sooner they can save lives. Now the fire station and ambulance are in danger of being moved to another location. We are currently creating awareness about it and appealing to our local representatives. 

Our communities’ problems are minuscule compared to what’s happening in a Louisiana prison for teenage offenders. Several weeks ago, the prison was cited for keeping these kids in ankle chains and solitary confinement for 12 hours a day so they could control them. Instead of getting state-mandated schooling 6 hours a day, they were lucky if they received 2 hours a week. These teenagers are filled with rage and would lash out at the guards and, in some cases, throw feces at them in fits of anger and frustration. When they get out, they will most likely act out on society. 

If you do your due diligence and read the other side of the coin, you’ll find that the prison is entirely understaffed, with only two poorly trained guards for 30 inmates. The educator who managed to teach was 84 years old and recently passed away. There are no funds for new teachers or the counseling these kids need. When the warden asked for more help and funds, he was told none was available. So now what happens? Band-aid measures will be applied, the story gets buried, and we wonder why we have increased crime. 

What can we do as citizens? Get involved and make sure your voice goes up the ladder of democracy. If enough of us pressure our mayors and local officials, our voices can travel up to our Governors, members of Congress, and senators. 

1.Educate yourself and be sure what you read is vetted and factual. Go to town meetings, find out what other problems exist in your area.

2.Learn about your town’s budgets, how and when they are allocated, and who the influencers are. 

3.Think about how you would set priorities and raise funds.

4.Make your voice known. Gather small groups of interested friends and like-minded people, write letters to your representatives, and invite them to speak at your local church, school, or other venues.

Most importantly, being an informed voter makes the tapestry of democracy more substantial and more sustainable. Learn from what the world is going through now. Free speech, voting rights, and unshackled media are on the side of democracy. Controlling media, indiscriminate book banning, and being jailed for speaking out is top-down autocratic suffocation. Democracy is a job. We all must work at. 

Mike Rosen