Todd Park Quotes

No citizen is apolitical; as a citizen, by definition, has to take interest in public affairs.

We are not the consumers of democracy, we are its proprietors.

Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a President and senators and congressmen and government officials, but the voters of this country.

I feel a real responsibility to my community and so right now there has been this bizarre myth in our community how our vote doesn't count. I'm trying to get out there and re-educate on how the government works and break that myth and talk about the importance of being involved.

The value of government to the people it serves is in direct relationship to the interest citizens themselves display in the affairs of state.

I feel it's a person's duty to participate in the governing of the country in which he lives.

I'm tired of hearing it said that democracy doesn't work. Of course it doesn't work. We are supposed to work it.

The right to vote is an important guarantee by itself, but it is what those votes add up to that matters even more. These votes shape the government under which we live.

Voting is fundamental in our democracy. It has yielded enormous returns.

The fight for reform comes down to a simple goal: giving our citizens the confidence that government serves the people first and the people only.

Democracy is not just voting for your leaders; it's really premised upon ordinary citizens understanding the issues.

People say, 'If you don't vote, then you don't have a right to say anything. But nine times outta 10, I pay more taxes than they do - so even if I don't vote, I still have the right to speak out.

At its most basic the democratic contract is a simple one: the right to vote comes with a responsibility to society, through tax payments and citizenship.

Most Americans aren't the sort of citizens the Founding Fathers expected; they are contented serfs. Far from being active critics of government, they assume that its might makes it right.

You are never wrong when you have voted because you've acted in accordance with your conscience and your beliefs, and you've exercised your democratic right, which is, you know, perfectly legitimate in our democracies.

Democracy functions best when we have an active citizenry.

Every citizen has to figure out what kind of government he or she wants.

I still have a great deal of faith in our political system and a great deal of faith in the American people and voter.

I think politics is important. It's how we run our society. I think it should be natural to have an interest in the subject, and I almost don't understand why some people don't.

A government for the people must depend for its success on the intelligence, the morality, the justice, and the interest of the people themselves.

The government serves the people - not vice-versa.

In a democracy, people usually get the kind of government they deserve, and they deserve what they get.

Voting is the first duty of democracy.

Abstention is a dereliction of citizenship: always cast a vote, if only to cast stones at the most hated.

To speak practically and as a citizen, unlike those who call themselves no-government men, I ask for, not at once no government, but at once a better government. Let every man make known what kind of government would command his respect, and that will be one step toward obtaining it.