WHAT DOES FREEDOM MEAN? NOTHING, IF WE DO NOT VOTE

Shannon Anders taught school for many years in this area and still substitutes in the Cape Girardeau Public Schools. She now works for the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors' Bureau. She is president of the Cape County League of Women Voters.

What does freedom mean? I conducted my very own, highly unofficial poll.

One neighbor replied, "Freedom means being able to go about your daily business without a KGB looking over your shoulder." I agreed.

Another lady said that it's being free to live where you want to and how you want to live. I agreed with that also.

A teacher I encountered thoughtfully said that freedom meant the opportunity to pursue whatever career interests you.

My thirteen year old friend said getting to do whatever I want to.

One friend told me that freedom is being able to swing your fist all you want as long as you don't hurt anyone with it. I like that, too. I remember that a version of this idea was a rule we had when I taught at Hawthorn School.

All these things occurred to me along with some other thoughts. I can be involved in community affairs or not; speak out for what I believe or remain silent. I am going to be just about as happy as I decide to be, and as healthy as I decide to be. Living in a democracy as we do leaves these decisions pretty much up to me. I am responsible for them.

In a democracy, we are governed by the will of the people. Elected representatives of the people make the rules. Yet, according to recent Census Bureau estimates there are 76 million eligible voters who do not use their freedom to vote. Twenty million people are former voters who have abandoned the electoral process.

In an action guide developed by NBC and the League of Women Voters, these words stand out: If we are to reverse this erosion of electoral will power, we must begin by awakening voters to the realities of their inaction. When few citizens vote, those few set the rules for all of us. Their special interests become the issues political candidates care about. Their private views become the basis for national policy. Their preferences determine who will judge us in court, who will protect our natural resources, who will set limits on our freedom.

Those who do not vote hand over these powers willingly to those who do, and cannot expect to be taken seriously when they complain about the ways these powers are exercised. Those who refuse to exercise their freedom to vote are refusing to accept the responsibilities of self-government which our Constitution gives us.

Please register, get informed, and VOTE. It's not just a freedom, it's a responsibility.