Why I don't vote
This will probably be the only serious post. Normal brightside and feelgood service will resume straight afterwards.
There's a school of thought that says if you don't vote, you shouldn't complain about the government. And that's a valid point and I respect it. And if that's what you think, then it's right and proper that you vote, in order to moan about the government.
But it doesn't work for me.
Because I really don't see that my vote changes anything. Here in the UK, the first past the post system, unless it gets decided by one vote (highly unlikely), the winner will win by more than one vote, so me voting for them won't make any difference. Similarly, whoever comes second, or third, will do so without my single vote altering that.
So in that sense, whether I vote or not, it won't alter the outcome.
But it goes a bit deeper than that.
Because the current voting system completely disenfranchises everyone who didn't vote for the guy (or girl) who came first. Unless you voted for whoever won the seat, you'll be represented by someone whose views you don't agree with, and the chances are that your representative in Parliament will be voting on laws, in your name, in ways that you won't agree with.
So unless you did vote for whoever won, are they really representing you, speaking for you, acting in your name? And would you want them to?
And in that sense, if your MP isn't who you voted for, you can be pretty sure they won't give a fig about your opinion, which will likely be disregarded and probably ignored.
Which kind of makes it a wasted vote.
To use the constituency where I live as an example, the current incumbent has a majority of 9,423. Pretty solid, and no one would deny. But, that still leaves 26,456 voters, or 49.6% of the electorate, who won't really feel that their views are being heard.
And then there's the issue of trust, which for politicians, let's face it, isn't high. I haven't believed a politician for years, and that's an added difficulty at election time. Because what do you do, vote for this liar or that liar? If, like me, you can't bring yourself to believe any of them, why vote for any of them? Even if they're saying they stand for the things you believe in, chances are they're only saying it to get your vote, and after that you can kiss goodbye to them sticking to their word.
And all we're ever allowed to vote for anyway, is the lower tier of government, because our upper house, as well as our head of state, aren't even elected at all.
But we all see it differently, and I celebrate that. My views are my own and no one else's. And for me, and just me, not putting my views on anyone else, if I did vote, then all I'd be doing is legitimising a institution I have no faith or belief in.
And thankfully, politics doesn't happen in the world of Cold Steel.
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