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The dilemma and facts of the case are outlined well, as always, by Adam Bonin at Daily Kos. Here's my take:
Signing a petition is an INHERENTLY public act.
And always has been and so should always remain. It is the act of standing on your own two feet (as opposed to bowing down) and saying politely but forthrightly to those in power that you think things ought to be done this way. It is not, and ought not, be any more private than putting a lawn sign for a candidate in your yard.
In order to protect citizens from undue pressure, all citizens (except those who've been legally disenfranchised) may vote without revealing their choices. That's to prevent political machines from requiring the votes of everyone who is in any way dependent on those machines, lest the citizens be punished financially. It's also because democracy depends on a high turnout rate in order to gauge the collective will of the citizenry and
But such anonymity is and should remain an exception in the realm of political participation. Writing, for some, is another exception, but the writer chooses to pay some cost in credibility in order to maintain that anonymity. Petitions, which are legal documents addressed to the government asking for some action to be taken, should not be the province of those who would sacrifice credibility for privacy. Instead, signing a petition should itself be an act of empowerment, of standing up and looking power in the eye, not of hiding one's face in shame.
Signing a petition is an INHERENTLY public act.
And always has been and so should always remain. It is the act of standing on your own two feet (as opposed to bowing down) and saying politely but forthrightly to those in power that you think things ought to be done this way. It is not, and ought not, be any more private than putting a lawn sign for a candidate in your yard.
In order to protect citizens from undue pressure, all citizens (except those who've been legally disenfranchised) may vote without revealing their choices. That's to prevent political machines from requiring the votes of everyone who is in any way dependent on those machines, lest the citizens be punished financially. It's also because democracy depends on a high turnout rate in order to gauge the collective will of the citizenry and
But such anonymity is and should remain an exception in the realm of political participation. Writing, for some, is another exception, but the writer chooses to pay some cost in credibility in order to maintain that anonymity. Petitions, which are legal documents addressed to the government asking for some action to be taken, should not be the province of those who would sacrifice credibility for privacy. Instead, signing a petition should itself be an act of empowerment, of standing up and looking power in the eye, not of hiding one's face in shame.
