"But I don't want to go among mad people," Alice remarked. "Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat, "We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad." "How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice. "You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here."
It’s been a whole 574 days since I last voted in a federal election but I have not yet voted in today’s 39th General Canadian Election: my son has asked me to wait until he gets home so he can go with me when I cast my ballot, which gives me a little more time to consider my options, I guess (you’d think 56 long days was time enough...).
It seems to me, as voting Canadians, we are always a little weary of change, but this might be the first time in a long time that we are more afraid of the status quo. I think as a result we'll see a better voter turnout than 2004.
With the Conservatives on the brink of a potential Majority, the Liberals and the Bloc fighting tediously for Official Opposition, the NDP making gains they don’t deserve and the Greens remaining altruistically optimistic, the possibilities are endless. And who’d want to be left out of that?
So, whether you are Choosing Canada, standing up for Canada or just believing in Canada, voicing your opinion today will make tomorrow’s Canada YOUR Canada.
It's our day today!
2 comments:
I have always enjoyed voting because of the strange characters it brings out of the woodwork.
You have crazy environmentalist, who can't afford a haircut or razor (or won’t get one even if he/she has the money). That's my favorite crazy because they are mostly limited in scope to places they can walk, or bike ride. Sometimes they will dust off the old hippie style van that pollutes more then today’s modern SUV, and venture out to protest trivial issues like deforestation, and the greenhouse effect. Most of the time these are people who are dissatisfied with their career so they try to put blame on large corporations that have denied them the promotion they so “badly deserve” all these years.
Then you have rich housewife, who feels it is her civic duty to vote, and looks in disgust at all the “common” people who have shown up at her place to vote. Usually she votes because she feels it is in her financial interest to do so. I hate this type the most, because they are the most difficult to put in their place. The typical upscale housewife spends very little time in the kitchen because they have an illegal Mexican to do all their chores (usually named Rosa or Maria). They don’t understand the value of a women’s place. This type of person will also head “fundraisers” for causes that get “ohs”, and “ahs” from people like “save the whales”, or “feed the starving children of Africa”.
Then there is your average joe or jane, who has a genuine interest in politics for the country as a whole, and isn’t in it for personal or financial gain. I really hate this type of person also because they are not the least bit selfish, and care about the welfare of others.
That might be bordering on one of the longest comments I've had in a long time :-)
I tend to think of myself as a student of human behaviour; I am often content to sit back and watch as a situation unfolds to observe the different motivations and resulting actions of people in general. Sometimes I like to stir it up a bit by injecting my own opinions or other controversial elements to watch how people will respond to it...
Voting is one of those interesting activities, not just because I am somewhat immersed in the politics of my time, but because everyone, ill-informed or not, has a passionate opinion one way or another about why, how or when they should or shouldn't vote and how they percieve their role in the community/world as a part of that. The ideal human condition hinges, it seems, on ones ability to vote regardless of what they are voting for. And as such, especially in our first world, want for nothing society, there is no end of cliche and no end of surprises.
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