If we lived in a democracy, abortion would be legal.
If we lived in a democracy, the wealthy would pay more taxes,
If we lived in a democracy, guns would be regulated,
If we lived in a democracy, the climatatstrophe would be averted,
If we lived in a democracy, there would be no plastic in our food,
If we lived in a democracy, there would be no homelessness,
If we lived in a democracy, we would enjoy medicare for all,
If we lived in a democracy, there would be no filibuster,
If we lived in a democracy, there would be no gerrymandering,
If we lived in a democracy, the minimum wage would be much higher,
If we lived in a democracy, people would not have to be ashamed of who they are,
If we lived in a democracy, childcare would be affordable,
If we lived in a democracy, billionaires would not have so much money that they have their own space programs.
People will tell you that democracy is complicated, but it’s really very simple.
You give people a choice, and you count their votes.
Everyone who tells you otherwise, really just want their vote to count more.
All the isms of the world- socialism, capitalism, materialism, idealism,
They are all enemies of democracy, because they assume that they and only they have the solution to how to take out the garbage.
We know how to take out the garbage.
We know how to feed ourselves,
We know how to protect ourselves from fires
We know how to keep the streets safe
We know how to prevent wars
We know how to educate our children
And what we don’t know we can figure out
We don’t need you standing in our way
You self-proclaimed masters of reality
“It’s unrealistic,” you say
The future is unrealistic, because it hasn’t happened yet
But yet you go on, with your patronizing laugh at our hopes and dreams
Because you’ve done such a good job managing our reality
The mass shootings,
The wildfires,
Police who are trained to fear the people they’re supposed to protect
Who are we at war with today?
But the market!
What will become of our precious market?
Democracy is a market- a market of ideas
Just like a farmer’s market, the people who show up with bad ideas go out of business
Only in a dictatorship can bad ideas endure for so long
Adam Smith lived under a king, and I wouldn’t want a king managing my market either
Democracies don’t want to force you to buy inferior products
Democracies don’t want to kill you with the air you breathe
Democracies want fairness and transparency
They want to know what’s in the food you’re selling,
Democracies don’t just want to know the price of gas, but what the cost is.
Democracies want a place to live.
You will do and say anything to keep the democracy from happening:
“We can’t let those people vote, they’re bad people”
The bad people get out-voted by the good
The crazy people get out-voted by the sane
And if you believe that there are more bad people than good,
Well, no wonder you hate democracy
You might as well surrender now to the devastation that is to come
But we don’t believe that.
Sure, democracies can get it wrong sometimes,
But democracies can also make it right
Because unlike you, democracies can change their minds.
Everything that was good about the American Revolution
Everything that was good about the Constitution
Everything that was good about the United States
Was only ever meant to be a beginning,
But for you it was an end.
For you “All men are created equal” should never be changed to “All people”, because that would mean everyone.
How do you control everyone?
You can’t.
“We the people” means we don’t get to pick and choose who those people are
It means that justice is decided by a jury of your peers and not by six people in robes
We the people decide what is moral and decent
And you hate that. You want that power.
And you’ve shamelessly gotten more and more
But what about the children?
You would have me believe that there is a pedophile around every corner
So where are the victims?
Where are these children?
Where are the parents of these children?
You want me to feel sympathy for imaginary children
When the real ones are being shot down?
You want me to feel sympathy for imaginary children
When the real ones are refugees from wildfires, hurricanes, pollution
You want me to feel sympathy for imaginary children
When a ten year old girl who’s been raped has to cross state lines
Because six people in black robes drunk on power fear democracy?
There was only ever one way that this was going to end:
You were always going to go too far
You’ve been in a bubble for so long that you drank your own kool-aid
And you didn’t see it coming
But here we are
And we all know that you will not be going gentle into that good night
You who have weaponized so many think that you are safe
But you will be surprised at how quickly your empire can fall
Because, and I think you already know this, we have the numbers.
Still you will be shocked how all your money and power
Your focus groups and mercenaries
Will prove so ineffective against the truth.
We will stand in your way
We will go on strike
And we will rise up against you
We already are
And there are too many of us for you to stop
There are two enemies of democracies: villains and cowards
The villain will do and say anything to hold on to power
And the coward doesn’t want any trouble
But if the villain takes enough from the coward,
They will be cowards no more, because there is nothing left for them to lose.
There are two enemies of democracies: villains and cowards
Which one are you?
