Citizens Must Vote To Defend Freedom for All

by Wyoming Liberty Staff

James Madison warned us in Federalist #10 of the violence "a number citizens who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adversed to the rights of other citizens" can do to liberty. 3,368 voters in Casper just illustrated his point by neglecting to perform their civic duty to stand up for the rights of a vulnerable minority during the City of Casper's Smoking Referendum Special Election on November 3.

This election also demonstrated the harsh consequences that befall citizens who are willfully too disengaged to make informed, vital decisions to preserve freedom for ourselves and our posterity. According to the most recent U.S. Census bureau estimates, there are probably more than 45,000 adults over the age of 18 living in the City of Casper. Of those 45,000+ adults, only 6, 262 chose to vote on Election Day. Therefore, the 3,368 people who voted to reject the Casper City Council's attempt to allow bar owners to decide whether to permit smoking on their property represent less than 8% of Casper's voting-aged residents.

When citizens allow such a small fraction of the population to seize political power in order to dictate how property owners in Casper are permitted to use their investment to try to make a living, it is a failure of citizenship. There is no excuse for Wyoming residents to stand on the sidelines while a small, well-organized group attacks the property rights of others. Wyoming law allows people to register to vote on the same day they cast their ballots at any election specified in a list that covers about every imaginable election. Poor voter turnout cannot be attributed to complicated requirements or forgetful scheduling; the 40,000 adults in Casper who did not vote were willfully neglecting their duty as citizens.

Our constitutional system is designed to protect individual rights from tyranny of the majority. However, effective self-government also demands that individuals stand up for the rights of others in order to keep government regulation within its proper limits. Unfortunately, tens of thousands of Casper residents were apparently willing to let a mere 3,368 self-appointed elitists decide how to run every bar, tavern, lounge, private club, and private office within Casper–even if no one from that small group will ever set foot in some of the establishments they asserted the power to rule.

Preserving our freedom sometimes means that all citizens step up to defend the rights and freedoms of the vulnerable few. On November 3, that meant that Casper's residents needed to stand up and vote in Casper's Smoking Referendum Election instead of leaving the outcome in the hands of 3,368 crusaders. These crusaders clearly felt morally superior to the bar owners whose rights they so willingly trampled, and demonstrated their contempt by voting against private property rights and individual choice. Wyoming and Casper must do a much better job of protecting private property rights and the freedom of entrepreneurs to pursue success as small business owners. Given the fact that there are only 24,968 people even registered to vote in all of Natrona County (population 81,624), it is clear that many of Casper's citizens have no intention of doing their part to protect the freedoms we all share.