Write your Congressman?

I have heard this all of my life – “if you don’t tell your elected officials how you feel, then they can’t make informed decisions. “  “Letter writing will make a difference!”  Speak up and be heard!”

Well, I have decided to take heed and let my voice be heard. One stand that I made early this year (late January, in fact) was a subject that I felt very passionate about – the decision on whether or not to let the press publish photographs of the flag draped caskets of our fallen heroes . I not only wrote both of my congressmen, I also wrote the Secretary of Defense (who was actually the one who made the decision) and Michelle Obama. 

The “Decision” was made in late February – not what I had hoped – without me hearing from anyone that I wrote to.  Last week, April 10 to be exact, I received a letter from one of the Senators I wrote to, thanking me for my comments and letting me know that if the matter ever came up in session, he would remember my thoughts.  That was it.  No specifics of what my thoughts were and no mention of the fact that it had already been decided.  I don’t even think they (I know he has a staff member that writes these letters) even knew what my letter was about.  All they had was a notation that I wrote a letter and maybe they should send a response.  Now at the last election I voted for this guy.  But not next time (and he has been there for awhile and will run again!).  Not that I expected him to move mountains just because I asked him to.  Not because I got some stupid form letter from a staff member with his electronic signature on it, but because it took them 3 months to respond and still didn't even know why I wrote to them.  Three months to send me a form letter that didn’t even reference what my thoughts were.  Why did I bother to waste a stamp?!?!

This week – April 15 – I received a letter from my other Senator.  Still a three month response time, but this Senator is one that I thought was kinda weasely and that I didn’t vote for.   Without much expectation I opened the letter.  Yes, it was the same kind of form letter, but there was an extra paragraph.  He not only mentioned my cause, he “regretfully” told me that the decision had been made to allow the press coverage, but that if he ever had the chance to influence this matter, he would and would remember my thoughts.  Wow!  Next time he will get my vote. Do I think that he really read my letter?  No.  Do I think he wrote this one? No.  But he has the intelligence to hire staff members that do their jobs.  Who look at the letter they are responding to and tailor the response to it.  By the way, this had an actual signature and not a digital one (and yes, I can tell the difference!).  Maybe my little voice can be heard!

Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Michelle Obama are new in their postions and must still be interviewing for their staff.  Surely with all the unemployement we have in this country they will find capable people soon.