Monday, October 20, 2008

Iced Earth

I got my ticket to go see Iced Earth and yes I booked that Sunday off. Iced Earth is a thrash metal/power metal band. This is going to be great. I haven't been to a concert in a while. Well a concert that I paid to see. So November 16th is the date of the concert and it is being held at the Odeon Events Centre. I can't wait!

Thursday, October 16, 2008

Tales The Fish: Is It Our Duty To Vote?

Mr. C.C. returns with an issue and a question many people face during election time or post election time even. Is it our duty to vote? Some say yes while others say no. Here is what Mr. C.C. has to say about voting. He will also attempt to see if it means anything to vote.

Hey yo and welcome to a post Canada Votes 2008 edition of Tales From The Fish. I am your favorite none voting columnist Mr. C.C.. Days after the voting all in Canada has concluded and the ballots are being tallied, I will talk about voting and what will to see if it means anything. So mark you ballot with an X or a check mark and lets get to voting.

Dictionary.com defines voting as (in democratic terms): the means by which such expression is made, as a ballot, ticket, etc..

That is what people did in Canada on October 14th, 2008. Canadians headed to the polls to elect a new government. Now, I bet you are asking yourself if I voted. No I didn't vote. The only reason being is I didn't know where to vote. I guess that I could have made the effort to find out where to vote. But is it really our duty to vote?

Some people would say yes, but other would say no. For some and yes I have said this that we don't know who to vote for. In the last federal election here in Canada, I had no idea who to vote for. But that wasn't the case this time around for me. Another reason I hear people say is because they think that their votes won't make a difference. A third reason is your classic "I don't care." Finally, all politicians are the same.
I will expand on the common excuses.

1. I Don't Know Who To Vote For:

I do get that people don't know who to vote for. But if you truly look at the issues each candidate is putting forth and study them, than you would have a better understanding and can then make a better judgement on who to vote for. Unfortunatly people don't vote on who will do the best job. They vote based on their favorite political party. I probably would do the same thing, but I don't have a favorite political party. But what I do know is that I am not a fan of the Conservatives in Canada, but if they had the right platform, than never say never in terms of voting for them.

2. My Votes Won't Make A Difference

You say your votes won't make a difference. But think about this way, what if you vote means the difference between the person you want to vote being elected or not being elected. I read this blog by Vannessa Gate entitled "Lame Reasons Not To Vote In The Election" and she made a good point that if everybody who said their vote doesn't count voted than it would make a difference. I couldn't agree more. It would be mind boggling the numbers of votes that would be cast. Than you couldn't complain that the person you voted for didn't win. It would be the fact that the others didn't vote for the same person. Or you couldn't complain that the person wanted to vote for didn't win. One vote can mean the difference between a person winning or losing as I said.


3. "I Don't Care"

A classic response to being asked if you are voting is "I don't care." Again Vanessa Gates brings up another good point that I agree with. She says that if you don't vote, than don't complain. Those words can't be any truer. People complain about taxes, arts and culture, healthcare, amature sports funding, etc., yet they won't bother to exercise their right to vote. But than again as a culture we do tend to complain. But voting is a way to be proactive even if they think their vote doesn't mean a thing.

4. All Politicians Are The Same

Yeah.... NO! If you followed the election than you would know that not all politicians are a like. Sure some politicians have similar ideas and views doesn't mean all do. For instance, Stephen Harper has a different view on arts and culture than say NDP leader Jack Layton. Just take a look on where those two men stand on that issue and you will know that they have differing views. That again goes back to the first point and that you need to study the issues and make an informed decision

There are people who are so against voting because they think it is a farse and they will go as far to give your proof as to their reasoning. For them, some people may think it is a conspiracy. But for just your average voter, you are giving up your a way to make a small difference even if you don't think your will vote will do any good. I guess for the next federal and provincial election I should get out there and vote. Make sure you get out there and smackdown your vote or you maybe kicking yourself afterwards if the person you wanted didn't win. As I have said one vote can mean the difference between winning and losing an election. This is one of those voices we have and we should unite and vote because we can change to course of history. You don't want someone like Stephen Harper in office again which unfortunatley happened.

In the end voting can be seen as important. But nobody can force you to vote. Just think about those points and see that you are being just too lazy to vote. Than again most people that don't can be considered lazy. After all this election 58 per cent voters turn out. Even lower than the election in 2004 I believe. Sadly I am one of the voters who didn't vote. The highest voter turn out was in 1958 when 70 per cent of the people who turned out to vote. If we made it 100 per cent of the people who voted, who knows what would happen. The more people vote, the more able we are to change the course of a countries future. If you don't vote than you don't care about your countries future yet you would rather sponge off them when need be. That is sad but true and this happens not just in Canada, but all over the world. Wether you mark your ballot with a X or check mark, just get out there and vote.