Carl Davidson : ‘Lazy’ People and Voting Rights

Political cartoon by Adam Zyglis / The Buffalo News / The Cagle Post.

‘Lazy’ people, voting rights, and
Republicans caught with their pants down

As the saying goes, most people work for their money, but a few people are able to let their money work for them

By Carl Davidson | The Rag Blog | October 3, 2012

Sometimes Republicans just can’t help themselves. Put a little heat on them, and they blurt out the truth, showing what they’re really thinking.

The latest case in point: The retrograde Pennsylvania “Voter ID” law was rejected on October 2, at least in part, by a state judge, Robert Simpson, allowing people to vote normally at least on this November 6. The decision was a victory for labor, the NAACP, retiree groups, and all who care about defending civil rights and liberties.

The main author of the bill, State Rep Daryl Metcalfe (R-Butler), however, chimed in with this comment:

Justice Simpson’s final decision is out of bounds with the rule of law, constitutional checks and balances for the individual branches of state government, and most importantly, the will of the people. Rather than making a ruling based on the constitution and the law, this judicial activist decision is skewed in favor of the lazy who refuse to exercise the necessary work ethic to meet the commonsense requirements to obtain an acceptable photo ID.

Yes, you heard that right. This guy thinks those objecting to this bill are “the lazy who refuse to exercise the necessary work ethic.” And all of us here in Western Pennsylvania not fresh out of the pumpkin patch know exactly who he thinks he’s talking about.

When Gov. Romney went over the top in a recent closed session with his upper crust friends talking about a 47% of the population who wouldn’t “take responsibility” for their lives, I thought things had pretty much hit bottom in the racist dog whistle department. Little did I know!

Metcalfe has done us all a favor in self-exposing the racist mindset behind this GOP voter suppression effort, and revealing exactly why they thought that, if implemented, it could tip the state to Romney. Now they’ve been monkey-wrenched, at least for the time being.

But here’s an interesting thought. I’m not a constitutional lawyer, even though I’ve studied it some. But, where in the Constitution, or in our state voting laws, does it suggest that lazy people or people with a hampered work ethic don’t have the same right to vote as energetic workaholics?

The wealthy had best be careful here. As the saying goes, most people work for their money, but a few people are able to let their money work for them. They can laze about, enjoying the good life of the idle rich. There’s a slippery slope here they may want to avoid for the future.

[Carl Davidson, a longtime activist and author, is a member of Steelworker Associates. He lives in Western Pennsylvania and writes for BeaverCountyBlue.org, the website of the 12th CD Progressive Democrats of America, and blogs at Keep on Keepin’ On. Read more articles by Carl Davidson on The Rag Blog.]

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2 Responses to Carl Davidson : ‘Lazy’ People and Voting Rights

  1. Anonymous says:

    … of course they are lazy. If we were handing out free cell phones with voter ID, there would be lines so long, you would starve before reaching the front. There is a certain group of people that always wants something for nothing .. grades they didnt earn, money they didnt make, tax refunds on income they didn’t earn, a baby daddy in the form of government assistance, etc. They are lazy. Shiftless was a word used in my day.

    The makeup of this group is not defined by race but by character, or lack thereof. It makes a convenient scapegoat to paint the naming of the lazy as a racial issue, but then the left is always lazy when it comes to intellectual honesty.

    As much as I hate to see the lazy vote in any election, other than American Idol or Survivor, I support their right to do so. As long as they have some ID to prove they are qualified to do so.

    – Extremist2TheDHS

  2. Anonymous says:

    I suggest a social experiment to see how the Rag Blog comes down on the side of validating, identifying, vetting, pick your term. I know that the articles and authors that are published here are carefully vetted. You cant just send in an article and see it published the next day.

    I submit that the electoral process and public service is a far more important than left wing opinion pieces on an obscure website.

    So if you Rag Bloggers really feel that anyone and everyone should be able to vote without any form of vetting, then give Thorne a shout and suggest he just go on vacation for a while and let every article that winds up in his email box appear on this website.

    Takers .. anyone?

    – Extremist2TheDHS (a.k.a Mister Commonsense)

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