My mother and I went to the advance polls today, as there is the Ontario election next week. Such a simple thing to do, marking that "x" on my ballot. We were mere moments in the polling station, the time shorter than the length of a song on the radio. When we were leaving, I'd remarked to my mum how there will be so many people who won't bother to take those few minutes out of their day to vote, whether it's on the election day itself, or at the advance polls, my personal preference.
I wonder if people realize just how important the right to vote really is? Granted, some people refrain simply due to ignorance, or the pitiful excuse that they just didn't have time. News flash! By law, your employer must allow you time to vote should the polling stations open after you've arrived at work, or close before you shift has ended. Therefore, to say, "I didn't have time" is an unacceptable excuse. As for people who are out of country, I saw this video with Canadian voters outside of Canada who had acquired a special type of ballot that managed to allow them to still vote. Still, I doubt people understand why such an attitude frustrates me to no end, so I suppose I ought to explain myself.
We live in Canada, the best damn country in the universe, where we get to live peacefully and free without a second thought, or a fear in the world. Other countries aren't as fortunate. Wars run rampid, rain is made up of shrapnel and bullets, and voting is only reserved for a select few. People in these Third World countries would give their lives just to be able to go to a polling station. So many more already have. To not take advantage of the right that people are literally dying for flabbergasts me. Since when is marking an "x" difficult? I realize that deciding who to vote for can be tough, however, there are numerous resources in this province that help make the decision easier. When the candidates go on their campaign trail, the media is all over them like vultures, or the paparazzi. Finding candidate and party platforms is fairly simple as every word, and breath in between, can be found in newspapers, the televison, and the internet. And don't forget about the televised debates, where every party leader lets the people know exactly where they stand on the issues of most importance. Start your search with an idea of what's important to you, and basically match up your beliefs with the candidate whose values are similar to yours. If you've ever sat in a civics class in high school, you've already done the bulk of this research as you did an exercise that helps you determine where you sit on the political spectrum.Was that so hard? No. So people can't say that they didn't know who to vote for.
Earlier this year, just before the Federal election, one of my best friends and I had a rather heated debate about voting, particularly marking ballots. He believes that if you don't like any of the candidates, then you should be able to spoil your ballot. Take it, and not mark a damn thing on it. He claims that it is a form of silent protest. I think it's ignorant of our right, our freedom, a mockery of what many others do not have. "If you weren't going to mark your ballot, why did you even bother wasting not only your time, but the time of others, of those who actually want to put a ballot with an "x" in the box?" I don't care who you vote for, but dammit, you had better vote!
What irks me even more is when females don't bother to go to the polls. My god! Ladies, do you even realize how lucky you are? Probably not, so here's a little education for you. I hope you enjoy history.
Once upon a time, in a nation in North America, called Canada, women had no rights. They weren't considered people, and they certainly were not permitted to vote. My great gram's mother fell into this category, along with my great gram herself, and her sisters as well. In the late 1920's, a beautiul thing happened. The Person's Case, in 1927, I do believe. Women, after going through more decades than I care to count, were finally considered people. They were finally allowed to go to the polls, and mark a ballot. My great gram was in her early teens, her sisters in their late twenties, early thirties, her mother likely an old woman, if she was still alive (I don't know what year she died). I remember this, my great gram once being considered something other than a person, every time I hit the polls. I think of how lucky I am.
I remember the first time I voted. I was 18, and it was a Federal election. My mum took my great gram and I to the advance polls. Great gram teased me, saying that her vote was going to cancel out mine. I didn't have the heart to tell her that it was the other way around. She was just glad that I was finally old enough to take part. Our polling station was at Participation House, and I think my mum and great gram knew all of the people who were running the operation. We mentioned that I was a first time voter, and the election volunteers became quite excited. I remember being given my ballot, told how to mark it, how to fold it, and I was directed to the screens that had the pencil. Ballot marked, I folded it up, and went over to the ballot box, the room quiet at the time. As soon as I slipped that paper through the slot at the top, the room erupted in thunderous applause. What an awesome experience! My mum's favourite part was having three generations of ladies all out to the polls in the same room at the same time.
One more thing, before I end my wild tangent. If you're too young to vote, I believe that you're given the right to have a political opinion on the condition that when you're old enough, you hit the polls. If you're voting age, and choose not to, you forfeit your right to have a political opinion, regardless of how positive it may be. I say positive as the majority of opinions I hear are negative. And the youth? Hello! To paraphrase Rick Mercer, scare the living hell out of the government, and get out there and vote! Our politicians target every group under the sun, but more often than not, they forget about us, the youth. Now, let's get out to the polls, make our voices heard, and become a politician's worst nightmare!
This election, think of the people who have never been given the chance to mark a ballot, think of the people who likely never will, and the women in Saudi Arabia who have just been told by King Abdullah that they will finally be permitted to vote in their next munincipal election, and even run in politics, should they have the desire. Remember my great gram, her mother, her sisters, and how they once had no rights, now to be considered people. Come election time, the most important voice we have is our paper one. May Ontario hear it loud and clear!
Below are links to "Vote Mob Abroad", and Rick Mercer's "Vote" rant. Videos compliments of YouTube.
No comments:
Post a Comment