Living In Rhythm

I honestly wasn't going to. This election has been infuriating me for weeks leading up to today and I honestly don't believe any of the candidates are worthy of my support.

But I went and voted anyway.

Because I am a firm believer that those who do not exercise their right to vote should not get to complain about the way the government runs. Why should they? If one does not care enough to go to a polling station, one’s level of ‘care’ should not increase when something affects them.

I am not a fan of the way things in this province have been going. The status quo is not acceptable to me, or to many (I’d almost dare to say most) people my age, in my position. I am not optimistic, even if a new party is elected. I know that every vote counts, but I also know a great deal about the mindset and priorities of the people in the area where I live, and areas like it. If someone new is elected (that is a very, very big if) I’m afraid a lot of the policies of the party for which I’m voting will not be made a priority, with the intention of not rocking the boat.

But you know what? Why not rock the boat? People my age are interested in politics. We’re interested in politics that make sense for us, just like middle-aged people are interested in politics that make sense for them, and lower-class people are interested in the politics that make sense for them. A 25 year old buried beneath student loans is not going to give much of a damn about (more) policies which benefit baby boomers.

What is on the docket for us?

Politics as a ‘thing’ are not all that accessible to people our age. Sure, the party lines are that young people are the future, are the change, and that we matter. This does not often come through in party policies. That doesn’t mean it’s not true.

So if everyone my age who is not completely thrilled with the candidates running or even the parties as a whole chose not to vote, we’re completely giving up on politics all together. We're giving the impression that we don't care, even if that's not necessarily the case. Hopelessness and not caring are two very different things. Unfortunately, they're often confused for one another.

Change is gradual, but we should at least be trying to accelerate it. We can’t do that if we don’t take the opportunities given to us.

I'm not one of those people who lives by the adage 'Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it'.

I think it's more like 'Those who constantly focus on how things have been in the past will never understand what's important or realistic for the future'.

We've been told from the time we were children that we could have it all, and maybe that's true, or maybe it's not, but as a generation, we are smart, educated, and we care, deeply, about issues older generations haven't or do not. It is a powerful thing, we just have to do something with it.

I'm not one of those people who believes that my vote is going to change the world - I'm far, far too cynical (and realistic) for that - but if young people grab onto politics and force the government to see that we are here and we are interested and we are not okay with being ignored? That's where the change is going to happen.

I'm sorry. Sometimes I have political feelings and things like this happen.

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