Canada's online magazine: Politics, entertainment, technology, media, arts, books: backofthebook.ca

Politics, tech, media, culture and more, from a Canadian point-of-view

  • Politics
  • Media
  • Culture
  • Science and Tech
  • Living
  • Arts and Books
  • Features
  • The Video
You are here: Home / Politics / Voting Liberal, without hope

Voting Liberal, without hope

10/12/2008 by backofthebook.ca Leave a Comment

Well, very little time left to make a decision and I don’t have a favourite party.

I have been very interested in listening to Green Party candidates and I believe that they ought to have a voice in parliament. So if I lived in a riding with a very strong Green Party candidate, I would vote Green.

I might also vote NDP if the local candidate was strong. That is because I know Jack Layton will never become Prime Minister. To tell the truth, even as I adopt more and more socialist tools, I remain a staunch liberal. This is a small “l” liberal because I believe that the Liberal Party of Canada is still in disarray. I prefer Liberal polices over other policies but Dion hasn’t come out swinging enough to win me over.

But I am a liberal. As much as I believe in democracy with all my heart, I believe in inalienable human rights even more. I know this because democracies make huge mistakes all the time. Sometimes self-government flips into mob rule — governed by ignorance, stupidity, or plain old depravity — particularly when the electorate is threatened, or simply feels threatened. If I had to choose between living in a democracy where my inalienable human rights were not respected and an autocracy where they were, I’d take the autocracy every time because I absolutely believe in the liberal idea of inalienable human rights limiting the power of mob rule. George Bush was elected (at least once and maybe twice). Hitler was also elected. And, while this is probably a lesser disaster, the morons in my riding are going to vote Conservative. Oh, that someone could save me from the mob rule of my neighbours.

Incidentally, that’s why I am not completely socialist. The last thing I want is for a bunch of addled-brained zealots tromping all over my rights because they have an idea. Some socialists can talk themselves into some pretty heinous behaviour. I am particularly frightened by people who seek to improve me, or do me good.

Anyway, nobody in my Alberta riding has a hope of beating the Conservative incumbent but, if I lived in a riding where somebody (dear god anybody) had a chance, I’d vote for them. Generally, I don’t like to vote strategically. I like to vote for the party and the person who most closely embodies my values and preferences. But let’s face it: the only reason Harper is in office today is because the Progressive Conservative and Alliance parties got over themselves and merged. I think we’re in rough enough shape financially and environmentally that we can’t take the chance of a Conservative majority.

I found out how my neighbours are likely to vote at a nifty page that allowed me to search by postal code (www.voteforenvironment.ca). If you’re interested in how they arrived at their prediction, check out their “advanced prediction model” at http://advanced.voteforenvironment.ca/poll_list.php.

I’ll be voting Liberal, without hope. And I will be joining the Liberal Party and the NDP and start advocating for a merge. Frankly, both parties could do each other a lot of good.

Happy thanksgiving.

– Eleanor Claire

Filed Under: Politics Tagged With: 2008 election, Alberta, Canada, Canadian politics, Conservatives, Green Party, human rights, Jack Layton, Liberals, NDP, Stephane Dion, Stephen Harper

Subscribe to BoB by e-mail or RSS

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Google+
  • Living
  • Politics
  • Media
  • Culture
  • Arts and Books
  • Features
  • The Video
Fire sale sign

Fort McMurray: Shopping time!

By Brady Tighe We’re now officially in the aftermath phase of the northern Alberta wildfire crisis. The fire is long gone, and everyone with a home to return to is back in its … [Read More...]

Nathan Cullen

Electoral reform: Hashtag fresh thinking

By Alison@Creekside The most interesting and innovative idea to come out of the first meeting of the all-party Special Committee on Electoral Reform, or ERRE, was Nathan Cullen's suggestion, … [Read More...]

Trudeau on quantum computing

The Trudeau gush fest is getting old

By Jim Henshaw There have been several bewildered as well as angry accounts coming out of the USA lately about how little media time has been spent covering the Democratic Presidential Primary … [Read More...]

Rick Meyers in Nanaimo Pride Parade

My friend, Rick, at the Pride Parade

By Frank Moher On this dreadful day, I don't want to write about the shootings in Orlando. I want to write about my friend, Rick. Rick lives just outside of Nanaimo, a city of about 80,000, … [Read More...]

Stephen Colbert on Late Night set

Triumph of the drama nerds

By Frank Moher Two drama nerds have recently moved into high profile positions. Before I name them (or perhaps you’ve already guessed who they are; or perhaps you’d like to scroll down and look at … [Read More...]

From “Our Rape Blog”: Shooting the Moon

Originally published on Our Rape Blog, the author's account of the aftermath of a violent sexual assault. By Mary Fraughton Have you ever played Hearts? It’s a card game. For our purposes, … [Read More...]

First Nations defending Lelu Island

The video: Lelu Island: “They will come.”

From Creekside: The B.C. provincial government is trying to green light the construction of a massive LNG terminal on Lelu Island in the Skeena Estuary -- Pacific Northwest LNG, backed by Malaysian … [Read More...]

Google

Follow Us!

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

RSS CBC News



Recent Posts

  • Fort McMurray: Shopping time!
  • From “Our Rape Blog”: Shooting the Moon
  • Electoral reform: Hashtag fresh thinking
  • The fish hotel
  • Hatred on an Alberta golf course
  • The video: Lelu Island: “They will come.”
  • My friend, Rick, at the Pride Parade
  • Our selective sympathy
  • The Water Bomber, The Frogman and The Great Canadian Novelist
  • Komagata Maru: The story behind the apology

Tags

9/11 Afghanistan Alberta bad behaviour books British Columbia business Canada Canadian military Canadian politics CBC celebrity computers Conservatives crime environment family film G20 Globe and Mail internet Jason Kenney journalism Justin Trudeau law Liberals Maclean's music National Post NDP newspapers oil sands online media Ontario Quebec RCMP religion sports Stephen Harper television theatre Toronto U.S. Vancouver women

Archives

The Video: Lelu Island: “They will come.”

Pages

  • About
  • Privacy

Copyright © 2023 · News Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in