Sunday, January 15, 2006

New law: Staple a biscotti to your jacket.

Would you vote if there was a law that you had to staple a biscotti to your jacket?I don't much like talking politics on my blog, or in general, but I gotta say, this upcoming election has me torn. I'm going to vote, because not voting is just unacceptable. I was going to just vote based on the party, but I thought I should at least know what the candidates in Halton look like before I cast my ballot. Last election I voted Liberal, and that was mostly because the idea of Stephen Harper being Prime Minister and all the things that come with that scare the shit out of me. While I probably lean more to the left and would vote NDP in any other riding, living in Oakville, I knew there was a significant risk that the riding could go Conservative. So Liberal it was. I hated the fact that I was "voting strategically" but I did it anyway.

Little did I know that our Liberal MP Gary Carr would vote against same sex marriage. Mother fucker! So now I can't vote for him this time around. Just can't do it. And I sure as hell will not be voting for the Conservative candidate Garth Turner. So NDP it is. Anwar Naqvi, you have my vote, even if it means that I am helping Garth Turner win the riding. And for the record, I know that Garth Turner voted for same sex marriage, but I still cannot vote for the Conservatives. Not going to happen.

I know that many people have decided that they "don't support this election" so therefore they are not voting. And that is just dumb. Unless you are leaning towards voting for the Conservatives - then you can feel free to stay home. Just kidding! But for realz yo, get your ass off your couch and go vote. And for gawdsake, do a bit of research before you make up your mind. Deciding to vote Conservative just because "the Liberals have been in power for a long time, let's try someone new" is not a good enough reason to vote Conservative.

Someone told me the other day that they don't vote because they don't understand the issues and they just don't care to understand politics. I asked her if there was any issue that would be important enough to her that would get her to vote, and she looked at me blankly. So I gave some examples "for instance, if a woman's right to choose to have an abortion was at risk, would that inspire you to vote? How about if your right to choose who you wanted to marry was at risk? Or your day-to-day safety was put in jeopardy because the potential new leadership of this country is seriously considering getting fully in bed with a country who's policies invite terrorism upon themselves? Would that be enough?". She didn't get it. I secretly began to wonder if there was a new law forcing all Italians to staple a biscotti to their jacket to identify themselves, would that be enough to motivate her to vote? Probably not. But it was quite an image...this beautiful non-voting Italian woman with a piece of stale almond biscotti crumbling all over her jacket.

GO VOTE ON JANUARY 23RD!

16 comments:

  1. Anonymous4:33 p.m.

    "And I sure as hell will not be voting for Conservative candidate Garth Turner."

    Care to elaborate on that?

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  2. I don't support the Conservative party, my values are very different than your party's platform. That is why. Nothing personal against you.

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  3. hi. you don't know me, but i came here through matildazine. may i just say, that this is a great post and i HAD to link to it. (it is also really creepy to me that garth turner ALREADY COMMENTED.)
    so. just to let you know, your argument worked on at least one person. yay you!

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  4. I won't vote Conservative because I don't believe in the party values. I am frankly shocked that so many of my educated new Mommy-counterparts are tempted to vote that way simply because of the $100/month child care credit Stephen Harper is touting. Do they know what it ACTUALLY costs to put a kid in day care?! Although I am by no means rich, I do believe that there are families in this country that need more help than I do. Why should I get $1200 a year when there are mother's out there who don't have enough money to buy their kids warm winter clothing and nutritious food? OK.... I am going to write my own post about this tonight because I clearly have a lot to say. Don't even get me started on gay marriage. There are people dying in this country because the public healthcare system has been so degraded and the Conservatives want to waste time and money by sticking their nose in the personal lives of others. Same sex marriage doesn't hurt people, but lack of access to healthcare, education and basic human rights does!

    Ahhh... the brain matter is stirring!

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  5. thank you very much for reassuring me...it does make me feel better that it wasn't ACTUALLY garth turner (does anyone else remember him running for the leadership position in the pc party the year that kim campbell won?) commenting here, but it is still creepy.

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  6. NO! It is not a privilege to be abused and repressed and I will not vote to assist assist any abuser to have power over me. whatever abuser gets i, they will ntot be supported by me. tAll the parties are run by ignorant,destructive and selfish people and I will not participate in giving power to any of them. Those that support them, deserve them. I take the first step towards freedom by not supporting any of them and regard anyone that does as a suicidal fool or as part of the oppression. I vote for the party that is not there by not voting. If enough people do this then it is a protest which will rock the nation and stimulate the growth of a new political party that is for the people and not for the corporations.
    Jan 23 is Political Fools day, The great deception: every existing party is dedicated to support and be paid off by the corporate elite and to put the jackboot to all ordinary citizens

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  7. ^ I've never been fond of that type of attitude. You think that you can accomplish something or experience freedom by not voting? How is your life that much different than that of a voting Canadian?

    "I vote for the party that is not there by not voting. If enough people do this then it is a protest which will rock the nation and stimulate the growth of a new political party that is for the people and not for the corporations."

    That's why we have a democracy. If you don't like the options presented, you're free to round up those that think like you and form your own party. If you think you're casting a vote for a non-existent party by not voting, then I guess about 40% of the voting population did the same thing in the last election. In doing so, did all you non-voters bring about major change or contribute to the betterment of our society in any way? No, I didn't think so. In that way, your line of thinking is flawed.

    The only way to "stimulate the growth of a new political party" is by an individual or group having enough initiative to take action to organize themselves into a new, recognized party. But non-voters just sit back, instead, and wait for 'someone else' to do the work, whilst claiming they are, in actuality, making some type of huge political statement to bring about change.

    Unfortunately, that is the most foolish thing of all.

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  8. The most foolish thing of all is to vote for anyone who seeks to enslave you and if you are arguing for them you are part of the problem. It's not a vote. canada is a fascist state owned by the corporations and run by their political dogs.
    to vote for any of them is to say Zieg Heil!
    Who cares? You vote for them you deserve to be expolited and enslaved by them. At least my conscience is clean and I will not knell down to the oppressors.

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  9. I think if you choose to live in Canada, which is a democracy, then you choose to live by the law of the land and participate in the society that exists today. I choose to live here therefore I am not enslaved. If you want to be an anarcist, you'd be better off going and living in the mountains somewhere unibomber style.

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  10. I totally agree with Angel. Sitting back and not voting does absolutely nothing. I'm glad that you want a revolution, but not getting off your ass on election day doesn't seem to be helping your cause, look how well low voter turn out is working to change the United States. I hear they're on the verge of a total anarchist revolution, don't you?

    Secondly, I was willing to give Max the benefit of the doubt, until the ridiculous refences to slavery and Nazis came up. Using that kind of language is just stupid and insulting to the victims of both slavery and the holocaust.

    J.

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  11. "Secondly, I was willing to give Max the benefit of the doubt, until the ridiculous refences to slavery and Nazis came up. Using that kind of language is just stupid and insulting to the victims of both slavery and the holocaust."

    Isn't that odd, my family are the graduates of the Holocaust, one tranferring from Aushwitz escaped, passing on their experience to me and I don't feel the least bit insulted by myself. I guess for only the ones on the outside feel this false respect and not being able to address evil.

    If you don't feel repressed than you are assisting the oppressors. If your life is wonderful, then you are getting yor 30 pieces of silver. Canadians can't defend themselves emotionally or politically. They have been socialized not to. They are the victims in crime, in the school in the workplace because the corporations do not want a population that can assert themselves. The corporations own totally the power in Canada and the current politicians are their stooges. They repress you , toss you a bone and tell you you are free. It's not up to me, they have total control of the media and they have done a total propaganda job on everyone. The news , owned by the corporations, is 100 percent distraction. Tehy don't report the real workings and dynamics of powere. Looking at the news, I am looking at a blank screen. There is nothing real there. The ony thing I can do is hide form the government and the insane zombies that vote for them.
    No matter which party you vote for, you will be oppressed by them and you will deserve what you get. I cannot have sympathy for any of you any more because it's obvious that Canadians don't want to save themselves.
    No don't give me any benefits, just go on about your conceited self-destruction and ignore me out.

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  12. The law of the land does not say you have to vote for your oppressors, not yet anyway. But they will.
    You are already enslaved. The corporations own the politicians and they own your daily life. That you cannot even see what is wrong means you have no hope of freedom.If you cannot see anything at all where you have lost your freedoms, it is not because you are blind but because you have been socialized not to ask questions.
    Your future is RFID, look it up and get used to it. Enjoy what illusions you have while you still can.
    You see! Because I don't agree with you and won't participate in your folly, I am required by your philosophy to leave and go live in the mountains.
    Isn't that just like a Nazi?
    It's called facist liberalism.
    Don't knock living in the mountains

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  13. Wow, I'm sure glad Max doesn't feel insulted by himself.

    I guess I'll go cellect my pieces of silver now.

    J.

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  14. I'm sure you will collect. There is no lack of your kind in Canada.

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  15. Okay, enough already. Save the novella for your own blog.

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  16. You reap what you sow. If you do nothing about the situation that you so vehemently detest, then you will be deserving of the situation that ensues.

    I vote because I do feel sad and I do believe that much politics and media is controlled by corporations. My vote says how I feel.

    I think that there are real people who choose to go into politics who are just mothers and fathers or that guy you went to school with who really thought they'd like to make a difference.

    I wish that I could stomach it.
    I can't - and that is my failure. I can only make the choice that I feel is best.

    There is something I believe that governments can do: they can help a large group of people to do something they wouldn't otherwise organize themselves to do.

    However, do I think they can fix all our problems? No.

    I think it is up to each one of us to make some good in the world.

    It's the best we can hope for.

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