As many of you know, I spend a considerable amount of time reading the different comments sections of our website to see what you have to say. Recently I've been coming across messages from some of you who say you just want to give up -- there's so much going wrong in America and the world you feel overwhelmed and helpless. So I wanted to meet you here for a moment, face to face -- so to speak -- with a simple three-word response: get over it.
There's plenty you can do and the more of you who do it, the more effective and powerful the results. It's a chain reaction, democracy.
Here's an example: Three high school girls in Montclair, New Jersey, got fed up when they learned that no woman journalist has moderated a presidential debate in 20 years. So they put together a petition and collected nearly 200,000 signatures. And a few days ago, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced that on October 16, CNN's Candy Crowley will be at the wheel during the second presidential debate between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. Coincidence? If these three high school kids can do something, you can, too
Another example: Michael Waldman and Keesha Gaskins are a couple of level-headed realists from the Brennan Center for Justice -- smart people who know how bad the world can be. You heard them on Moyers & Company talking about what citizens are doing to fight back against attempts across the country to suppress the vote.
In Maine, voters "vetoed " the politicians by mounting a campaign to overturn a bill that would have required a government issued photo ID to vote. Ordinary everyday citizens of Maine repealed a state law that would have forbidden registration on Election Day.
The fight against suppression of the vote is taking place all over the country. And here's one thing you can do: Tell us if you and your friends and neighbors see efforts underway to make it harder to register or vote where you live. Share your stories with us. Send them to us and we'll spread the word.
So, come out from under the covers or get off your couch, and stop wringing your hands; as the old song goes, there's nothing to it but to do it. Find people near you who are standing together to tackle a wrong and make it right, clean up a mess, turn the rascals out.
I'm Bill Moyers and I approve this message. I hope you do, too.
Watch Moyers & Company weekly on public television, and explore more at BillMoyers.com.