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Okay, I figure most of us have no use for this latest election nor a lot of the BS being tossed around by the major parties. However, this is you one chance to make a difference and to make your voice heard. You might think your single vote wont make a difference nor does it mean a lot. But you are wrong, so very bloody wrong. During the last election, more then a few ridings went to the winning candidate by a handful of votes, in one riding, 22 votes made all the the difference. Think about that when you think your vote doesn't mean a thing or count.

Now I am not going to tell you who to vote for. And you may not even have someone you wish to vote for. But I am willing to bet there is a party or two that you want to vote against right? Personally I am an old Progressive Conservative from way back, but I will be voting strategically this year. In other words, I am casting my ballot to the candidate, be they Green, Liberal, NDP or The Raging Raving Loonie Party who has the best chance of denying Harpo and his Neo-Cons my riding, but that is just me, you are free to make you own choice.

The upshot is folks, you have not only the right but also the responsibility to vote. Many Canadians have fallen on the field of conflict to protect your right to vote, don't dishonour their sacrifice by pissing away the opportunity. And when you decide you are too busy to vote or can't be bothered to make the effort, think about those around the world who are fighting and dying as we speak to win the right to vote too many of us take for granted. So come May 2nd, get off your Fat Royal Canadian Arses and get down to your local polling station and cast that ballot.

Oh, one last thing. If you don't vote and don't like who ends up governing this great nation for the next few year, don't come complaining to me. Coz if you don't vote, you don't get the right to b itch afterwards.

Ceemes.

Addendum to the younger crowd, those between 18 and 30 something.

You know, you demographic is the least likely to vote? The least likely to pay attention to what we older farts are up to. And you know what, that is going to bite you harshly on the arse twenty or so years from now.

Now my generation was pretty much the same, politically naive and detached. And we are paying for it today. We ignored what was going on in the halls of power and what our seniours were up to. We didn't get involved until now and look at the bloody mess we made and have to clean up.

Point is kids, you can make a difference and have a say where this nation is going and what it will be like when you get to my age. Be proactive today, get involved, study the issues, look at the parties and make an informed choice. The alternative is sit on you butts now and be reactive when it all starts to fall apart around your ears in a couple of decades time.

So I'm not supposed to use this piece of paper just to keep the recycling crews busy... hmmm... a novel concept.

i wish i was legally authorized to just throw rocks at stephen harper... like a public stoning ya know...

QuietMonkey wrote:<snip>
i wish i was legally authorized to <snip> a public stoning ya know...

Apparently you don't live in Vancouver!

I agree, Canadians (in fact any nationality) should vote. To vote is a huge hard won right and it gives you the opportunity to shape your country as you think best.

Andrea and I went to great lengths to vote (in time) for the Canadian federal election. We had to request a Special Ballot a few weeks ago and last week (Monday) it was mailed back to Canada ($4 postage) so our votes as Canadians living abroad counted.

Mike

QuietMonkey wrote:So I'm not supposed to use this piece of paper just to keep the recycling crews busy... hmmm... a novel concept.

i wish i was legally authorized to just throw rocks at stephen harper... like a public stoning ya know...

You could always hunt down Doris, errr, I mean Stockwell Day and egg the sucker.....he was your MP. I think the best thing about him "retiring" is that soon I will no long be subjected to his smirking face on a large billboard when I ride to Penticton to visit my mom. Can't tell you how hard it was not to stop and torch that bloody thing.

Excellent point Ceemes!!!

People really do need to vote if they want to have any say in how our country is run. And yes, it's even more important for younger people to get involved because generationally younger folks see things so much differently than older people. So if younger people don't vote, then the country continues to be run for the older folks. And at this point in time, when the economy has been going tough, decisions are currently being made that support older folks rather than younger folks. Over the next 20+ years us younger folks are going to have to pay a lot of money for decisions that are made on behalf of older folks. Research it...

If not enough people vote then we will no doubt end up with yet another Conservative minority government. Here is why this might not be the right decision:

- are you happy with the fact that Canada is no longer the #1 peace keeping nation in the world, we are not somewhere around #45 and are currently engaging in physical war ourselves

- are you happy that, although Canada has an elected senate, Mr. Harper has appointed 50% of the senate members rather than allowing us to vote on those seats?

- are you happy that, in general, Canada is becoming more and more American as time goes on?

You have the opportunity to change our path...

If you are not liking your options, and I'm not sure if you can do this with a federal election (as of 2001 you couldn't, damn you interwebs and non current information. Lol) you could try showing up and refusing your ballot. This let's the parties know they lost a sincere vote at the polls. Not just a spoiled ballot. You can do this in provincial elections, and there was a strong case to allow it in federal, just don't know what came of it.

sunshine229 wrote:are you happy that, although Canada has an elected senate, Mr. Harper has appointed 50% of the senate members rather than allowing us to vote on those seats?

How did this happen?

Johnj wrote:

sunshine229 wrote:are you happy that, although Canada has an elected senate, Mr. Harper has appointed 50% of the senate members rather than allowing us to vote on those seats?

How did this happen?

Government appointments. And no one heard about it.

Last time I voted in Canada (2007?) I remember being handed a ballot for the Senate and since I didn't even know we had an elected Senate I asked to spoil the ballot as I couldn't make an educated decision. Now, it seems that Mr. Harper has been appointing new Senate members... so what's the point of voting for them in the first place?

I don't get it...

But either way, what he's done is wrong. So I just thought I'd point it out.