The Chronicle-star combined with the Moss Point advertiser., 1945-07-27
=. Oh The People, For The People -

There is an old political saying which goes back many
centuries. TO the effect that q government is never any better
than the citizens who support it, and conversely, that the
people get exactly what kind of government they deserve.
If they are good, law abiding, intelligent, thrifty, then the
officials they elect and the government they establish is
going to reflect their own collective nature. If on the other
hand, the are irresponsible, lazy, dishonest and cynical, then
the government is just as sure to reflect these qualities, too
So it seems that we, as citizens, really do have free choice
in the matter. If we want a better government, we must
be better citizens; if we don't give a boot about the policies and
the personalities which control our national life, set our
taxes, pass our laws, declare our wars and write our peace
treaties-then we can let the other fellow do the voting and
the electing, and not complain at the results. If they elect
a governor, a senator, a president, we dislike, then we share
as much responsibility for the deed by not voting as the
minority does by voting.
And there is more to the matter than this. For one
thing. the smaller the vote. the more easily it can be
controlled by a ring. But when the qualified citizens
turn out in huge numbers on election day to exercise
their own free choice. then the candidate of greatest abl-
tY has a better chance of winning. for machine politics
Is increasingly neutralized by the larger vote.
We have no liking for the type of fellow-known to us
ali-who announces loudly and cynically near election time
that he has not registered and will not vote because "all
politicians are crooks" and there is no choice between bad
candidates Actually this is the talk of ignorance and lazi-
ness rather than of intelligent skepticism, for the matter goes
deeper than this. The existence of an intelligent and alert
electorate forces the nomination OF intelligent and alert can
didates. 1t is only in lazy and stagnant political areas that
the type of public official declines so low that there is no
Another type of character who deserves exposure for
contemplate laziness is the fellow VINO reasons that since
elections are rarely decided by the margin of one vote. there
is no reason for him to vote either way. In the first place,
a surprising number Of elections are decided by a handful
of voters. During the last national elections we saw a
number of senatorial and congressional races left unde-
cided until the absentee and soldier votes were counted, and
some of the winners and losers received their political for
tunes by majorities of a fraction of one percent.
Furthermore, though one man seldom decides the whole
election, the thousands who fail to vote because of this de-
eide many elections by staying away from the polls, and most
OF them are too empty-headed to realize it.
We have elected many good public officials in Mis-
sissippi over the years. but we have also elected a num-
Der OF lemons. We want to keep on electinq the good
ones and cut down on the bad ones. And it is up to us.
in the exercise of our own free will. to do so. by register
Ing If we are qualified voters and participating in the
city. state. and national elections.
The Pascagoula Junior Chamber of Commerce has done
a commendable service by focusing attention on this duty
and function of citizenship, and should be wholeheartedly
supported IN the observance of Citizenship Dav, july 81.
when all who have not yet registered are asked to do Sc.
Mayor John X. Watts has named this day as Citizenship Dav
IN a public proclamation, and Governor Thomas Bailey has
written congratulatng the Junior Chamber for its activities
III this behalf. There is no need for citizens to wait until
July $! Tor registering, for the occasion can be observed Just
as well by qualified voters as by those who nave not quail
fled. But we do urge all who have not registered bv this
date and who are qualified to do so, that they take advantage
OF the occasion and of the numerous aids offered bv the
Junior Chamber and go through the painless and easv mat
ter OF becoming full and participating citizens. and help to
make this more and more a government "of the people, for
the people, by the people"