When you start talking about elections being rigged, you're pushing people beyond democratic governance. And it's a very, very dangerous thing to do.
Interpretation
Discussing rigged elections undermines democracy and can lead to dangerous consequences.
Bruce Springsteen warns that when individuals begin to claim that elections are rigged, they erode the foundations of democratic governance. This kind of rhetoric can incite distrust in political systems and lead to chaos, as it fosters an environment where citizens may feel justified in rejecting established democratic processes. The statement highlights the critical importance of maintaining faith in elections to ensure societal stability and the health of a democracy.
In practice
During a political rally, one might use this quote to emphasize the importance of trust in the electoral process.
I played in front of every conceivable audience you could face: an all-black audience, all-white, firemen's fairs, policemen's balls, in front of supermarkets, bar mitzvahs, weddings, drive-in theaters. I'd seen it all before I ever walked into a recording studio.
I imagined the hard things that pulled us apart _x000D_ _x000D_ Will never again, sir, tear us from each other's hearts.
Tonight this fool's halfway to heaven and just a mile outta hell_x000D_ And I feel like I'm comin' home.
The artists we love, they put their fingerprint on your imagination, and on your heart and your soul.
Well I got this guitar and I learned how to make it talk.
I was always concerned with writing to my age at a particular moment. That was the way I would keep faith with the audience that supported me as I went along.
A typical vice of American politics is the avoidance of saying anything real on real issues.
Compromise makes a good umbrella, but a poor roof; it is temporary expedient, often wise in party politics, almost sure to be unwise in statesmanship.
I do not want to see the Republican party ride to political victory on the Four Horsemen of Calumny-fear, ignorance, bigotry and smear.
The U.S.'s major strength factor and weapon is its economy. If you cripple it, you cripple the military.
The president - every president - works for us. We don't work for him. We sometimes lose track of this, or rather get the balance wrong. Respect is due and must be palpable, but now and then you have to press, to either force them to be forthcoming or force them to reveal that they won't be.
Too often, governments are quick to use excessive force and even pervert the course of justice to keep oil and gas flowing, forests logged, wild rivers dammed and minerals extracted. As the Global Witness study reveals, citizens are often killed, too - especially if they're poor and indigenous.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.