1. to combine in abstaining from, or preventing dealings with, as a means of intimidation or coercion:
2. to abstain from buying or using:
That entertainers choose not to attend the inauguration is totally inconsequential. However, elected officials, who would otherwise attend, choosing not to attend, belittle the office into which the people have voted them. This is no time for attempted intimidation or coercion. Instead of celebrating the peaceful transition from one president to the next, an important cornerstone of our democracy, these elected officials are petulantly acting in a manner inconsistent with this same democracy. Thus they belittle the office they hold.
A staunch supporter of the freedom of speech, I understand an individual's consuming desire to express his or her displeasure or support. But sometimes the manner, place, and timing in which this expression is offered must be taken into account. A sitting federal senator or representative can always take to the floor of Congress to express his/her views in opposition or support of the current administration and president. We may not agree with with they say, but they have the right to say it. That is democracy in action.
But to childishly claim they are boycotting the inauguration serves to demean the positions they hold. As elected leaders of our nation, they must set positive examples by their actions. Principled disagreement with the administration, coherently articulated at an appropriate time and place, exemplifies democracy in action. A whining claim of boycotting the inauguration does not.
Rather than belittling their office, these individuals could take the moral high ground by stating their are attending the inauguration to visibly demonstrate their unyielding support for the peaceful transition of power characteristic in a free democracy, even when they vehemently disagree with the incoming president.
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