Let’s get Back to the Basics of civics & citizenship.
Merriam Webster defines Civics as a social science dealing with the rights and duties of citizens.
Citizenship is defined as the qualities that a person is expected to have as a responsible member of a community.
Let’s focus on 4 key words therein: Rights, Duties, Expected, and Responsible.
Citizenship carries an expectation of duty and responsibility based on each citizen’s rights.
Let that sink in.
What are the duties and responsibilities expected of citizens? Voting is at the top of the list but certainly is not our sole responsibility. Participation in civic activities in your neighborhood, town, city, county, state, and nationally is also expected.
Voting, by itself, is not enough. We the People must be present to hold elected officials accountable. Citizen voices need to be heard by the herds of unelected bureaucrats that are delegated to carry out the laws passed by those elected officials. Citizens must gather to make their voices heard.
Politicians like to say the legislative process is akin to sausage making. This unappealing description is meant to make us want to look away, to not pay attention, to shirk our duties and responsibilities as citizens. It’s meant to elicit unease on the citizen’s part because they think we’re not smart enough to watch, understand or participate in the sausage making. No one wants to see that. Our elites prefer you don’t exercise your responsibilities as citizens because active citizens get in the way of their political agenda.
Yet remember, “sausage making” was the contemptuous phrase of the elitist Otto von Bismarck, Chancellor of the German Empire from 1871 to 1890. The Iron Chancellor distrusted the common people, their representative government, and ruled Germany through a powerful bureaucratic machine staffed with Junker nobility “educated” in “scientific management.”
Sound familiar?
This Old World “scientific management” led to world war, the rise of communism and fascism, and unimaginable misery.
And now it’s here.
The benefit of living in a free and affluent nation is the abundance of leisure. This has allowed us the opportunity to shirk our duties as citizens. In the void created by passive citizens an expansive and corrupt enterprise has taken root in all levels of government. Marylanders are rediscovering the need to become engaged citizens. But what does citizen engagement look like and how does it work?
What does it mean for each of us as individual citizens just starting to come together?
The first step to being a citizen is to get informed.
COS Action Maryland's Back to Basics campaign will explain just how easy it is to practice your civic duty.the basics of Maryland civics throughout the legislative session in Annapolis, highlighted with Citizen Action Day on February 2nd. For Maryland’s citizens, this is a key moment to act upon the responsibility of citizenship.
This is your opportunity to exercise your rights and responsibilities as citizens by participating in our annual Convention of States Citizen Action Day on February 2nd in Annapolis. Legislators are invited to attend, and you will have the opportunity to let them hear your voice, face to face. Use this link to contact your legislators. Handwritten letters and phones calls are most effective. You can attend hearings and request in-person meetings with your Delegates and Senator.
COSA MD’s Article V Convention of States Resolution will be introduced in the House of Delegates and the Senate in 2022. We’re honored to be sponsored by Delegate Mark Fisher in the House and Senator Justin Ready, but they cannot bring our resolution to fruition alone.
Citizens taking responsibility, doing their duty and exercising their rights are required.
You are required.
Convention of States’ non-partisan central mission is to grow a grassroots army of citizen activists to reclaim self-government - government of the people, by the people, for the people - and reverse the growing overreach and abuse perpetrated by the federal government.
In case you were wondering, grassroots is defined as basic, fundamental or the very foundation or source.
Citizens are the very foundation of our Nation and the source of government power. You are essential and we need you in this fight with us. Here's where you can find ways to take action.
Et voilà, we are Back to Basics!
