Well not lose, maybe. But run! For public office. You. If you are reading this, chances are you have a chip on your shoulder because I've interacted with quite a number of you and I mean that chip thing in the most complimentary of ways so put the donut down. You're opinionated. I've seen it with my own eyes. Guess what? You don't even need to HAVE an opinion to run for office. All it takes is a social security number. An attitude is just an extra bonus and I KNOW you have an attitude. Again, not my first rodeo. Why run you say? Running sounds hard you say? Like work? They don't call it "strolling" for office, but depending on the office, it can be quite a rewarding and fun experience. Sidle past the Orange Tentacles of Equality to see how.
See its pretty simple. Every election has a ballot with spaces for names and these are actual people that live near you (for the local offices like Township Trustee, which I just lost by 37 votes but I'm not bitter or demanding a recount cuz that's like over 5% of the vote). If you are an actual, legitimate, real-live person, there are steps that you can take to have YOUR NAME appear on that line on the ballot. It sounds like something maybe you would never want to happen in a million years or would rather be skinned alive or boiled in oil than do, but if that is not your initial reaction (and maybe even if it is), I highly encourage you to think about trying it for several reasons.
Frist! You can save America. I'm not kidding. Republicans run EVERYTHING in statehouses, county commissions, school boards, home owner's associations, and book clubs across America because they frickin RUN for shit. By demonizing the liberal brand, they have successfully cowed millions of us into shying away from the most important aspect of participatory democracy- the um, PARTICIPATION!
Second. Running for local office is not like running for president. Your life will not be turned upside down by Wolf Blitzer. And if he tries I'm pretty sure you could kick his ass. Just because his name is "Wolf" does NOT mean his is all that. Do not be intimidated.
Third. Its actually kinda fun to meet some of these people- and that's coming from a dyed-in-the-wool hermit who has taken steps to restrict contact with other human life forms. Hey its good for everybody to break out of their comfort zone once in a while right?
The best way to get involved is to contact your county Democratic organization. Google your county name and find out when the meetings are and go to one. They might have cookies and coffee. That's how they got me hooked.
Even in losing, I've made strides in building the foundation of a progressive infrastructure that will transform America in the years to come. See I was the first person in the 160 odd years of this township to run under the auspices of the Democratic Party. The township is about R+3 which is much closer than I would've thought because it is a very rural county. It went for Obama in 2008. Yet I'm the first person ever to have a D after their name on the ballot here. I hesitated to run because my wife and I own a business locally and I though outing myself as a socialist would hurt business. Last month my name and party ID was on the front page of the local paper. I was a little nervous about the reaction we might receive at the business. October was the largest monthly percentage gain in our 12 years here for many reasons but at least I appear to have been wrong about hurting our business if people knew I was a Democrat! Ha! I LOST and I'm still yelling EAT IT, REPUBLICANS!!!!!!
You should all try this. 2014 is coming baby.