Last month, the world was stunned by events in Russia as Wagner Group mercenaries under the command of Yevgeny Prigozhin left their bases in occupied Ukraine for a blitzkrieg charge on Moscow.

Citing dissatisfaction with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu’s incompetence in the Ukraine conflict, Wagner mercenaries staged an insurrection that looked as though it would result in the long-awaited overthrow of President Vladimir Putin’s regime.

Denounced as traitors and criminals by Putin, Wagner forces began to excite and rally Russians who had privately been at odds with Putin. Prigozhin’s commandos pushed aside token resistance by Russian state security forces in less than 24 hours and came within mere kilometers of the capital city. But then, something happened that no one expected: Prigozhin suddenly went on television pleading with his troops to stop their assault and to return to their positions in Russian-occupied Ukraine, leaving supporters to be arrested or purged. The coup was no more.

Despotic rulers like Putin do whatever they want, whenever they want, because they know the playbook for bad government by heart. Look at Russia, China and Iran. All three countries have a pattern where the oppressive government is tolerated just long enough until they spark outrage that results in massive protests or coup attempts.

But then after the disgusted and harried public get the desire to shout and break things out of their system, the movement goes nowhere, and everything resets to the status quo.

Rule No. 1 of tyrants: “It’s OK to upset and offend the public. Do whatever it is you need to do to profit or reward your friends. The people may get very mad at you, but they’ll get over it, and you’ll stay in power.”

Come to think of it, that almost describes what’s going on here on Oahu with our elected incumbents. I couldn’t help but chuckle when I learned that certain activists were organizing to recall some members of the Honolulu City Council over the proposed 64% pay increases.

Why do I laugh? Because council members know that they can vote for whatever they want, do whatever they want, say whatever they want, and even if you should be angered by them, you’ll get over it, and they’ll stay in power.

Consistent Engagement Vs. Parachute Outrage

Oahu has this annoying habit of electing bad people to office, pretending to not know how they got there in the first place, protesting when things go wrong, but then reelecting those same people come election time. Worse yet, one of the biggest reasons we have out-of-touch elected officials is because there is no consistency in the way we engage, follow-up or follow-through with people in office.

I call this “parachute outrage.” Elect someone you barely know, don’t pay attention to current events until a problem occurs that you can’t ignore, then drop in just long enough to show a fit of anger and threaten electoral punishment (which never comes). 

A better approach would be for Oahu residents to get to know their City Council members from the day they take office, to practice good citizenship by constantly communicating with them throughout their entire term – on both the good, and the bad – and to be reliable in voting to reelect or remove them when they fail to perform. When we show consistent engagement, we deter bad government and we become stakeholders, not just observers, in the policymaking process.

Why is Oahu so messed up? It’s messed up because we constantly make excuses for why we don’t have time to vote, don’t have time to testify and don’t have time to pay attention to current events. When we operate on that kind of indifference or apathy, elected officials don’t have to worry about getting you upset, because when the time comes for you to actually make good on your promises, they know you’re full of hot air that just needs to be vented.

Parachute outrage results in more than just invincible incumbents or worsening conditions for taxpayers and residents. It also gradually depoliticizes the population so that people feel that they have to choose between being persecuted for being associated with anti-government radicals, or remaining silent and suffering with the little they still have. “The last attempt to throw out so-and-so went nowhere,” the logic goes, “so why should I risk my job or my reputation by getting involved in politics?”

By contrast, when elected officials see that you are always aware of what they’re doing, always communicating with them over their performance, and consistently rewarding good behavior (or punishing bad behavior) at the ballot box, they’ll adapt their style to be more sympathetic to the public. 

Abraham Lincoln famously said “The people are the rightful masters of both congresses and courts, not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrow the men who pervert it.”

We’ve reached a point in our society where the people yell and scream and shout but then don’t actually vote. We’ve come to a place where shameless gall and deceptive marketing brings rewards in the absence of initiative and transparency. If we want a better Honolulu City Council, we need to be better citizens.

When will our elected government take the people seriously? They’ll take you seriously when you and your neighbors start taking them seriously.