Is anyone else overwhelmed with the plethora of online petitions?

[MineralMan]

24. I'm not a big believer in petitions in general.

Those that get signed by numbers of people in the six figures are probably worthwhile, but they're very rare. The White House petition site is not commercial, but most of the petitions there are misdirected and deal with issues that the Executive Branch cannot change without congressional action. So, those are really wasted.

Frankly, I feel that if everyone who signs multiple petitions would actively encourage people who are Democrats to go and vote, that would be far more effective. The danger with petitions is that people confuse signing them with activism. Petition signing isn't activism. It's far more passive in nature.

"There, I signed these petitions. My work is done."

So, except for petitions to recall elected officials, petitions that get candidates on primary ballots, and petitions to put initiatives on the ballot, I'm not really excited about them. They're too easy to ignore.