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DAVID BENTLEY'S WEEKLY COLUMN |
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STRUGGLING TO UNDERSTAND
As I made some last minute purchases one evening, the Assistant Manager of the store waited on me. Because we were approaching election day, I made small talk by asking him how he felt about a particular issue. His answer surprised me. This young, well-groomed, and pleasant fellow said, "You're talking to someone who has never voted in his life." Before I could respond, he continued, "I know...it's unpatriotic, undemocratic, poor citizenship, and a waste of my vote. However my experience is that no matter who you vote for you just get another politician and nothing changes. So I don't pay attention to the elections. I can't even tell you who's running or what's on the ballot." Although the silence was awkward, I was at a loss for words. The stock replies obviously had not persuaded him in the past since he had already invoked the epithet "unpatriotic, undemocratic, poor citizen throwing away his vote." So I thanked him for his help, took my purchases to my truck, and headed home. Since then, I've wondered what I could have said to make this young man want to vote. I've read some articles on hope. Positive hope results in optimism. Negative hope results in fear. Yet my non-voting manager was neither optimistic nor fearful. He was merely disinterested. He had decided a system run by professional politicians and partisan politics would not be changed by his vote. Meanwhile, voter rolls and election turnouts show that he is not alone. Most people would love to have a world in which every single person agreed with them. However that is clearly not reality. So we tend to make those like us the good guys and those different from us the bad guys. The truth is that no one knows all the answers. So perhaps this young manager has something important to teach me. He certainly has me thinking.
© 2005 David Bentley David Bentley, M.Ed. & Personal Coach, coaches clients through the game of life, helping them find balance, clarity of direction, and purpose in an ever-changing world. You may contact him at 360.378.8436 by e-mail at david@coachbentley.com or visit his Web site: www.coachbentley.com |
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SAN JUAN ISLANDER © 2008 |
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