"Enthusiasm" gap ruining chances for "change"

The people are fed up. They are sick and tired of Democrats, and mad enough to vote every single one of them out of office in order to make their point.

But if there's one thing the people hate more than Democrats right now it's -- Republicans.

A new poll confirms it. While 60 percent of Americans disapprove of the job performance of Congressional Democrats, Republicans in Congress are getting an even worse grade -- a 68 percent disapproval. In other words, more than two out of every three Americans feels that the GOP is doing a poor job. Many Americans think that President Barack Obama is doing poorly as well. But former President George W. Bush and potential Republican presidential candidate Sarah Palin receive even lower marks than Obama, indicating that more Americans are fed up with Republicans than Democrats.

Despite a stronger distaste for Republicans among the American people, Democrats are still likely to lose seats come November. Nearly sixty percent of those who identified themselves as oppositional to Democrats say they have a strong interest in the outcome of this midterm election, while only about four in ten who support the Dems and Obama say the same.

That "enthusiasm" gap could spell disaster for Democrats. With more conservatives coming to the polls, revved up and ready to "take back"/"take away" Congress, and with less progressives having that same enthusiasm, there's no doubt that the GOP is going to prevail this year, possibly taking both chambers as a result.

The vast majority of Americans, however, don't support the Republican Party or its principles. Most Americans either support Obama or wish he'd move further left -- the number of Americans who think he's too liberal are simply a substantial minority.

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When we won in 2008, "change" was our rallying cry. Many of us, however, were content to make our voices heard but to never speak up afterward. Change doesn't take place in a singular event -- the world doesn't change substantially because one man gets elected president. Change requires a social movement, an entire community of people coming together, frequently, to demand boldness in our nation's policies.

Gandhi once said, "You must be the change you wish to see in the world." If we are to exact the change we want for this nation, we have to do more than sit and gripe about things. We have to take to the streets, demand it out loud, fire ourselves up, and show America that we won't give up. Change never came in an instant -- it only comes through perseverance, through a continual struggle towards a goal that unites a common people.

So yes, DO vote this year. But go beyond that as well -- engage yourself in local races, national, statewide, or otherwise. Join a non-profit organization and commit at least 10 hours a month to that group. Take part in online discussions -- don't YELL, but actually try to discuss things, and see if you can't change a mind or two.

But most of all -- be aware of complacency, especially your own. When we become lazy, when we become lethargic to our movement that we fought so hard to establish, we will lose all subsequent battles 10 times out of 10, guaranteed.

The other side is fired up this round. We must do our best to show that we won't give up, that we won't let them take control over Washington. They've made a mess out of things before...let's not allow them the chance to do it again.