Do internet or email petitions produce the intended results?

Answer 1

No, internet or e-mail petitions are not valid. There is no way of validating who's name has been added or if they are even of legal age. It is common for people to add the names of their neighbors, spouses, and children which would be forgery, making government officials not give them much credence. If an e-mail petition is asking for information to validate who you are, they become a security risk seeing that they are being forwarded on and on to hundreds or thousands of people you have never heard of and could potentially wind up in the hands of a spammer or worse. Then, petitions usually ask people to forward the message to the proper government official when the names reach a certain number. However, most people just keep adding their names and forwarding it on, never stopping to check which official it should be forwarded to. In the end, the same petition e-mail floats around for years and years, well past the time the bill was being considered by any public official, still being forwarded to everyone on your list. I am still getting petitions in my mail box that I had already received four years ago. I always look into the information in any petition I have been forwarded. Nine out of ten times, it is inaccurate to downright false. People should always gather the facts on their own before making a stand. Then, when you do, don't forward your stand away. If it turns out you really believe in the cause, then look up the e-mail or phone number to your local, state, or federal representatives and send them your own thoughts directly. If you do, they might actually count for something.