One the questions I see most often, all over the internet, and hear in person, “Is what can I do about any of this?” Well, the three most effective routes are:

1) Run for office. Yes, really. Stop letting the bland, pretty people rule. Let’s fill the next election with cantankerous real people who have brains and spines.

2) Vote with your dollars. If you don’t support ________ make sure you aren’t giving money to that end. Sometimes, this is kinda of like the opposite of window shopping. Trying to find a kitchen stand mixer manufacturer that does not support Planned Parenthood is hard. By the time you eliminate all those that do, there are less than a handful of machines to chose from.

In case you missed it, a certain very large online service that has everything from A to Z is a major supporter of just about everything that’s in opposition to the constitution. Sure, it’s easy to get everything in one place. However, do you really want a world where there’s only one retailer?

Perhaps you can remember this song:

I load 16 tons, an’ what do I get?

Another day older and deeper in debt.

Saint Peter don’ cha call me cuz I can’t go!

I owe my soul to the company store.

https://www.ernieford.com/sixteen-tons

That’s what happens, when there’s only one place to buy things. They own you. The one place driving every other retailer- every mom and pop store, every specialty store and every corner shop out of business with their ultra low prices is swiftly becoming the only option. At which point, without competition, they can set any price for backpacks or books and we won’t be able to go anywhere else.

Or you can watch Wall-e, and see how a world where one company runs everything from garbage collection to politics might turn out.

3) Use the voice God gave you. This last point is the most important in my opinion, because in truth, #1 and #2 are really just extensions of #3.

The wonderful thing about America is that every voice is supposed to count. Every person is supposed to be heard and represented. Your locally elected official, whether it’s a school board member, the sheriff, the dog catcher or your state senator, is supposed to represent you and your interests. They are not supposed to represent only the well spoken. They are not supposed to represent only the rich. They are supposed to represent all of us. From the littlest unborn child to the oldest great grandfather, all of our voices count.

Your representatives however, will not know how to represent you, unless you tell them. Big corporations spend billions telling legislators what’s safest and best. Unless we the people, out weigh their input through sheer volume of contact, how can we expect “the bland pretty people” to have the testicular fortitude to stand up for what’s right?

Write letters, send emails, call their office, call their cell phone, send texts or Facebook messages and do it often. Do not write 17 page essays. It won’t get read. If the average American has a seven word attention span, that includes our elected officials as well.

I recommend something no more than 500 words (aka three moderate paragraphs). Well spaced, quick, to the point, single-topic contacts are best. If you are concerned about five issues, write five letters, make five phone calls. And please, most of all, write like you talk. Don’t change yourself for them. Besides, hearing the voice of each, unique person is the job of an elected official. If we all try to sound cultured and eminently knowledgeable, we will end up sounding like mindless parrots repeating a script.

It does not matter if you swear. It does not matter if you make a grammatical error. It matters that you speak up. Just do it.

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North Dakota House of Representatives emails:

mkadams@nd.gov, bertanderson@nd.gov, dickanderson@nd.gov, pkanderson@nd.gov, rcbecker@nd.gov, lbellew@nd.gov, mbeltz@nd.gov, tboe@nd.gov, gdbosch@nd.gov, jboschee@nd.gov, mbrandenburg@nd.gov, rbuffalo@nd.gov, colechristensen@nd.gov, clairecory@nd.gov, cdamschen@nd.gov, jdelzer@nd.gov, bdevlin@nd.gov, gdobervich@nd.gov, jddockter@nd.gov, sertelt@nd.gov, cfegley@nd.gov, jayfisher@nd.gov, rguggisberg@nd.gov, lbhager@nd.gov, jhagert@nd.gov, krhanson@nd.gov, phatlestad@nd.gov, cheadland@nd.gov, pdheinert@nd.gov, jahoverson@nd.gov, mchowe@nd.gov, zmista@nd.gov, djohnson@nd.gov, marycjohnson@nd.gov, tbjones@nd.gov, tkading@nd.gov, kkarls@nd.gov, jkasper@nd.gov, gkeiser@nd.gov, kkempenich@nd.gov, dhkiefert@nd.gov, lklemin@nd.gov, bkoppelman@nd.gov, kkoppelman@nd.gov, gkreidt@nd.gov, mlefor@nd.gov, dlongmuir@nd.gov, sclouser@nd.gov, jmagrum@nd.gov, amarschall@nd.gov, bmartinson@nd.gov, lmeier@nd.gov, amitskog@nd.gov, crmock@nd.gov, dmonson@nd.gov, mrnathe@nd.gov, dnehring@nd.gov, jonelson@nd.gov, menelson@nd.gov, eobrien@nd.gov, mostlie@nd.gov, mowens@nd.gov, bpaulson@nd.gov, gpaur@nd.gov, cpollert@nd.gov, tkporter@nd.gov, bpyle@nd.gov, dwrichter@nd.gov, sroersjones@nd.gov, kmrohr@nd.gov, druby@nd.gov, mruby@nd.gov, masanford@nd.gov, blsatrom@nd.gov, mischatz@nd.gov, aschauer@nd.gov, jeschmidt@nd.gov, mschneider@nd.gov, rschobinger@nd.gov, cschreiberbeck@nd.gov, lsimons@nd.gov, kskroch@nd.gov, vsteiner@nd.gov, gstemen@nd.gov, mstrinden@nd.gov, paulthomas@nd.gov, nptoman@nd.gov, wtrottier@nd.gov, btveit@nd.gov, smvetter@nd.gov, dwvigesaa@nd.gov, rweisz@nd.gov, gwestlind@nd.gov, dzubke@nd.gov