The Fun Election

Oct 17, 2012 | Welcome Column

It’s always weird when we’re having our CBA Board elections on a year when the national elections are going on.

By October of a national election year, we are all heartily sick of campaigns, candidates and elections. Our nerves are frayed, our fists are clenched and our tempers are short. And along comes the CBA saying “vote vote vote”.

Despite the obvious differences in the scope of the two elections, there is one truism that applies to both as well:

It’s important to vote. You can argue that the national political process is hopelessly corrupt, and you can decry the dearth of challengers for the seats on the CBA Board. None of this diminishes the importance of YOUR vote. Yes, your vote is only one, but each and every one matters. In the national scheme of things, your vote combines with others like raindrops forming a torrent, and even a corrupt political process takes note. On the CBA side of things, we must have a 10% quorum of votes for the election to be valid, AND with only a few hundred votes cast, YOUR particular vote can make a very real difference.

Not voting is not a statement. The lack of statement is no statement. Silence is no real message. I think more often than not, when I hear people say how they’re not voting as a form of protest, they’re really just using protest as an excuse for laziness or intellectual queasiness with taking a stand or making a decision. That’s OK – we’ve reached a point in this country’s history where you have the luxury of doing that. You don’t have a real fear of a military coup or the sound of jackboots outside your door in the night. But if enough people abdicate their responsibility, you give more power to forces that could conceivably move in that direction.

Obviously, the stakes are not as high in the CBA. But we also enjoy the luxury of being able to spare some time and passion for the finer things, like art and music. You’re reading this because you’re a bluegrass fan, so you probably have some opinions on how you’d like the CBA to serve your needs. You can let the Board know by speaking with the Board members directly, by emailing them, or by calling them. More importantly, you can help choose those Board members, by voting in the election!

If you’re particularly energetic, passionate and motivated, you could even run for a seat on the Board of Directors yourself! Talk about making a differen

Read about: