According to Snopes, “slacktivism is the ultimate feel-good that derives from having come to society’s rescue without actually getting one’s hands dirty, volunteering any of one’s time, or opening one’s wallet.”
We all receive ’cause’ emails. You know, the emails from your friends that ask for your help with good causes? The ones that ask you to add your name to a petition or to send it to 10 friends? The topics cover the rainbow from African genocide to religious freedom.
There is an excellent Snopes article on this topic. On-line petitions may incite your passion but don’t make sense. First of all, any petition can only indicate the sentiment of a great many people. The politicians (who else would you send a petition?) that receive them know that each signature does not equate to a vote. In contrast, internet petitions mean little or nothing.
When a paper petition is delivered there are pages of unique hand signed signatures. An internet ‘petition’ has lists of names in the same font. Politicians know there are programs that will generate names at the press of a button. An internet petition is basically trash on delivery.
Sure, there are sites that collect names for different internet petitions and they may be legitimate. My guess is those sites are more interested in getting their visitors to click on one of the income generating ads on their site than on any petition. Whatever their motive, even if they verify every signature and actually do deliver the petition to the intended politician, the petition is trash on delivery.
If you want to influence politicians, write an old fashioned letter. It will be respected for what it is; you personal thoughts, signed by you a voter.
There is another unverified reason to delete ’cause’ emails. It is suggested that petitions and ’send to 10 friends’ emails are a source of email addresses for scammers and spammers. By sending them on to your friends you verify ‘live’ email addresses they can fill with internet junk.
If internet petitions do no good and they may be a source of internet junk, my advise is to delete them all. If you feel strongly – write a letter, sign it and send it to your representatives in the US Mail.