My Civic Duty

I'm going to cast my ballot for an individual and a party that has no hope of winning. Why? Because my vote doesn't count no matter what. Cynical? Not at all. The only way my vote would count is if, without me it would be a tie. The odds of that happening are astronomical. So there is my tiny voice in the wilderness - peep, squeak. So why bother voting? I still have this quaint and antiquated notion of civic duty. Silly, isn't it? But it's the reason so many people don't vote.

Stephen Harper is a brilliant man. He knows that people vote the image and not the essence. They generally can't tell the difference, so they're led by the nose. The fireside chat, the sweater vest, children being taken to school. It makes me want to puke, but it sells. Politicians have always been great baby kissers and dog petters, but he leaves them in the dust.

Stéphane Dion is a highly intelligent man and very strong and resolute, he was the force behind the Clarity Bill, but I doubt his wisdom. His image sucks and the Conservatives are pounding away at it with great delight.

Jack Layton wants us to believe he can become Prime Minister, so I don't think too much of his intelligence or his wisdom. The NDP is yesterday, they have no policy to distinguish them from the others. Let's just thank them for Medicare and lay them to rest.

Gilles Duceppe is the joker in the deck. He impresses a good number of people of both languages. He is quick and incisive, he can cut like a knife. This quality is typical of so many Quebecois. Non-Conservatives hang their hopes on his ability to limit Tory gains in that province.

Liz May is going nowhere, but wouldn't it be a gas if she would upset Peter MacKay? She is a breath of fresh air and the environment needs a champion. Certainly it's not on Harper's agenda, and Dion's Green Shift will likely die in the womb.

So there you have it. It appears likely that we'll give Harper his majority and live to regret it.