6-10-04

I have been holding off lately on letter writing about the TCAN affair. But my fervent wishes for understanding by the TCAN Board of Directors have been dashed by their recent announcement of a “great reform” of how board members are chosen. The Board members are bent on retaining the status quo by allowing themselves to be elected by a very small group of “electors”. And guess who the 15 core “electors” are? The board itself! The rest of us solidly retain our non-member status, valued for our monetary and volunteer efforts but still not members with any representative say in how TCAN is run from the top.

When our country’s Constitution was being considered for ratification by the states, a group of thinkers called the “Federalists”, Hamilton, Jay, and Monroe (all lawyers) vigorously analyzed how our country was to be governed and had great influence on our political system’s final forms. These three men were confident in our citizens’ ability to govern themselves. Madison said: “Who are to be the electors of federal representatives? Not the rich, more than the poor, not the learned more than the ignorant, nor the haughty heirs of distinguished names, more than the humble sons of obscurity……The electors are to be the great body of the people of the United States…… Who are to be the objects of popular choice? Every citizen whose merit may recommend him….” These arguments were being made to counteract an elitist view of the great- unwashed citizenry, and a fear of the republican form of government.
But the elitists got their say too. To exclude direct popular election and promote “stability”, the Electoral College’s indirect election of the President was developed. An elite group wanted to exclude the general populace from direct selection of their President, both because of a fear of general unruliness and a fear of the judgment of the “common man”.
The TCAN Board is showing every sign that this fear of the common man is alive and well. What is wrong with a representative form of government that trusts its citizens’ judgment?

As I have pled before, “Let’s fix it, and not pretend it’s business as usual.” The board’s latest maneuver is business as usual with an added twist of grandstanding. I say “No member taxation without representation”!