Vote! (For someone other than the BNP)

About ten minutes ago I voted for the first time. It's somewhat shocking and somewhat shameful, that it's taken me this long. I'm not really sure why I haven't before. I almost voted in the last general election but then didn't. I've given excuses like not knowing who to vote for and that an ill educated vote is as bad, or worse than, not voting. Which doesn't sound terribly convincing. Or the old deeply cynical stand by of how they're all as bad as each other and it doesn't really matter who gets in because everyone will end up complaining about them in the end anyway and then vote them out in favour of whoever's so hot right now.

I'd actually forgotten about the election today, despite having literally driven past my polling station that I can see from my front door on the way home. Then I saw a Tweet from a friend that said "have to vote today to keep the racists out". This in turn reminded me of my housemate telling me recently that he's heard some news story about the percentage of people who claimed they were going to vote for the BNP in the upcoming (today's) Election. I forget the figure but it was high enough that if truly reflective of the population then there is something seriously wrong in this country. So I got off my ass, walked a few hundred meters and voted for someone other than the racists. I'm not aware of the specific policies of who I voted for, or indeed for anyone else on the ballot. (Labour did put a leaflet through my door specifically telling me not to vote for the Conservatives but presumably they have some sort of policy beyond that.) So it could be argued that I voted from a position of ignorance. But if someone in the same constituency as me was stupid enough to vote BNP I cancelled them out, and that's good enough for me.

The ballot paper being in alphabetical order, the BNP was at the top. Second on the list was something called  Christian Party and I now find myself wondering about that. I'd probably vote for them over the BNP, assuming they're not the sort of Christians featured on US news networks explaining why they won't vote for Obama because he's an Arab/A Terrorist/Wrong kind of Christian/Isn't an American, but Religion seems almost as bad a political platform in it's own way as not liking people who's skin isn't 'white' enough.

Mike Willis : 04 Jun 2009 20:25 |  Comments (2) |  Report a problem