VOTE! It's Your Right and Duty!

Stardate 4938.1


One of the freedoms and rights granted to people in a true democracy is the right to vote. This is an honor bestowed upon citizens when they reach the age of adulthood, and are capable of sifting through all of the issues and politics in order to add their voice to the Nation's fate. Of course, some folks are too young to legally vote, but they will have the chance one day, and I seriously hope they use it. Over the course of the last few elections, there has been a marked decline in the percentage of eligable voters actually going to the polls. The numbers have dropped quite dramatically in fact, as this chart shows:

• 1984 - 75% Voter Participation
• 1988 - 76% Voter Participation
• 1993 - 70% Voter Participation
• 1997 - 67% Voter Participation
• 2000 - 61% Voter Participation
• 2004 - 61% Voter Participation

I can think of many reasons why people do not vote. Maybe the weather is bad, or their daughter has dance practice. Of course, polls are open pretty much all day, so pick the best time to go. Maybe they are unaware of the election or issues at hand because they are all watching FOX reality tv shows, instead of catching up on Canadian news once in a while... Maybe they don't care. I find that the people who say they don't care are the first to bitch about the government. If they waive the right to vote, they ought to just shut up. This is the best reason to vote in my opinion. Have YOUR say. Every little vote helps shape the Nation, one way or another, even if you think you are only one voice in 30 million.

Our election will be held on January 23rd, 2006 and voters will have to decide who they want to vote for. This is very important as the parties involved tend to have such different ideologies about social programs, and how they deal with other nations in our world as well.

So now, the big question is who will vote, and who will you vote for?

There are many choices and each has their obvious merits and flaws, though some may have more to them than first meets the eye. You can check the websites of the most prominent parties quite easily:

Liberal Party of Canada
Conservative Party

New Democratic Party

Green Party of Canada
Bloc Quebecois

Other parties and information can easily be found HERE.

If the Canadian Election was today, which party would YOU vote for?
	Liberal
	Conservative
	NDP
	Green
	Bloc Quebecois
	Other
	Won't Vote
	Too Young to Vote