Why Don't People Vote?

During a panel discussion on December 12, 2007 at the City Cable TV office, three Cambridge MA politicians lament the low voter turnout. Lovell Dyett reveals he was elected to the School Committee. Sandra Graham was a City Councilor and a State Rep. Robert Winters ran for City Council and for Election Commission.
No politician ever raises the possibility that they are the reason for low voter interest. None of these pols did. Voting is the least amount of effort a citizen can make to participate. They don't even need any knowledge of the candidates or the issues. All they have to do is show up or send a ballot to the election commission.
In December 2007 newly elected Cambridge City Councilor Sam Seidel appeared on Harvard Student Ben Eisler's "Inside City Hall" CCTV show. He referred to CCTV and to Robert Winters as NGOs (Non Governmental Organizations). As Bill Clinton said, "Give me a break."
Does Seidel know that CCTV gets $850,000 per year in City money? Is he aware that Robert Winters works for and is protected by a police agency? Or is Seidel intentionally misleading the voters? It is bad enough if he holds misguided opinions and misuses words. But if he deceives that is worse. In either case it is one small example of why voters reach a limit of being offended by politicians and stop paying attention and stop voting.

Robert Winter's New Year's Prediction for Cambridge MA

Robert Winters appeared on Cambridge City Cable TV with former City Councilor and State Rep. Sandra Graham and WBZ radio host Lovell Dyett for three panels in December 2007. They discussed the City of Cambridge. Among the remarkable comments on those shows, Winters made the prediction that the City Council will become more of an advisory body. He indicates that he shares Walter Lippman's view of government, where elitist managers run the government and tell the unwashed what they need to do. This is Harvard's view of government as well. Currently the Cambridge City Council is a weak group of spineless politicians with little knowledge of how the city government works. They defer to the city manager and his appointees.
Under MA state law the Council is supposed to set policy and hire the 25-year serving Manager. This power hungry Manager sets policy and tells the Council what he will and will not do. They are unable to assert their statutory power to reign him in. Winters would make the upside down version of state law permanent shutting out the voters from having any influence on what the city does. Winters refuses to identify which police agency he works for -- the Cambridge police, the Harvard University police, or the FBI. His abuse of police power is obfuscated by the newest City Councilor, Sam Seidel who referred to Winters as a Non Governmental Organization. Since when have the police become a non governmental agency?

Cambridge MA Elections 2007 Seidel

Sam Seidel candidate for Cambridge MA City Council appears at the Progressive Democrats Candidate forum on September 5, 2007 at the City Wide Senior Center.

Sam Seidel Candidate for Cambridge MA City Council appeared on Cambridge Community Television as guest of Ben Eisler on Tuesday September 18, 2007.

Cambridge MA City Council Candidate Sam Seidel speaks at the Candidate forum on September 26, 2007 at the Marlowe Hotel in Cambridge. This forum was sponsored by the League of Women Voters, East Cambridge Planning Team, East End House and the Cambridge Chronicle.

Cambridge MA City Council Candidate Sam Seidel speaks at the candidate panel on October 3, 2007 at Cambridge College. This forum was moderated by Steve Miller, founder of Livable Streets Alliance, and sponsored by Green Decade Cambridge, Cambridge Chamber of Commerce, Friends of Alewife Reservation, Green Streets Initiative, Harvest Co-op, Harvard Green Campus Initiative, Mass. Sierra Club, Mystic River Watershed Association, Clean water Action and ZipCar.