dratts

I add my voice to petitions all the time. I feel that it is probably my most effective way of supporting my agendas in Washington. I'm not saying that all lobbyists are evil. I think that corporate lobbyists for one have far too much influence on legislation that affects all of us, not just their corporate interests.

quote Originally posted by Formula88: Do you believe politicians should represent the will of the people they serve? I do. The question is then how they know what that will is. I agree many lobbys are going to the extreme, but at it's core it's a group of people paid to present certain views and opinions to the politicians. If you support green energy, you might be a member of Greenpeace, who represents your views to your representatives. Organizations like Greenpeace, NOW, NRA, NAACP, etc. are all made up of people with shared views and those groups lobby representatives on their behalf. The alternative is for each individual to make their 1 voice known on each and every issue, and that doesn't work very well in practice. How often do you talk to or write your representatives? Most people don't even know who their reps are. But it's much easier to join a group you believe in and cut them a check to support their effort to make your views known in D.C. I'm not saying it's not abused or without fault. But it has it's place.