[This column originally appeared in "Knots of Thoughts" by Dave Bruha in the June 20th edition of the Consort Enterprise. It is reproduced here with Dave's permission.]
Last week, Albertans in two provincial constituencies went to the polls to elect a new representative. Ralph Klein's old seat in Calgary/Elbow was claimed by the Liberals with the support of 16% of eligible voters. The PCs held onto Drumheller/Stettler with Jack Hayden getting approval from 19% of the electoral count. The outcome is not all that surprising, but the low voter turnout is a dismal reflection of how self absorbed Albertans have become.
In the 1975 General Election 60% of voters acknowledged their responsibility to be a part of the process. By 2001 the numbers slid to 53% and dipped to 44% for the 2004 election. And in the recent by-election only 33% of voters in this constituency pried themselves away from "Survivor" and cast a ballot (less than '20% at the two Consort polls). Two thirds, 66%, the vast majority - want the rest of us to take responsibility for them. We can elect the government; we can worry about social policy and health care and the education of their children. We can look out for their well being and their pensions and be guardians of the life-style they enjoy and take for granted.
Living in one of the richest provinces in a wealthy country with a thundering economy has produced a self-centered society, which doesn't give a damn about anything beyond their own doorstep. Taking four minutes out of their busy schedule is asking way too much! They have time to whine and give voice to their multitude of complaints: the soaring cost of gasoline, electricity and natural gas, unchecked development of the oil sands, rent controls, etc., but when given the freedom to make changes and cast a ballot they are silent.
There are now over 6.5 billion people on this planet and most of them would give almost anything to have the freedoms and rights that we are blessed with here. The apathy and laziness of Albertans would shock the billions of people who have no voice, no right to vote, and no opportunity to be heard. How can we justify our indifference to someone who has been brutally beaten or even killed for wanting what we so easily discard - the right and freedom to vote?
The tens of thousands who died fighting wars to insure our freedoms would be appalled at how casually Albertans have tossed aside their responsibility and are depending on others to carry their weight.
There is something fundamentally wrong with a society who won't participate in one of the greatest freedoms we have. Nothing good can come about when a small minority of people elects the body that will govern over all.
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Side note: The Consort Enterprise (established in 1912) is published weekly in Consort, Alberta. It's a great little newspaper and its owners bend over backwards to serve the needs of their community. Kudos to Dave and Carol (the owners) for doing such a fantastic job every week.
What is this prattle about "responsibility to be a part of the process" and how people who don't vote "want the rest of us to take responsibility for them"?
I don't vote because:
1) the people who get elected then spew on about about how they "have a mandate" regardless of how puny their actual vote count, or how small the percentage actauly went to them
2) people vote about all sorts of things that simply ought not to be up to a vote, as if the method of the tyranny somehow ameliorates the tyranny
3) the actual impact of my vote deteriorates with every increase in voters, and (the biggest reason)
4) there is no "none of the above" on the ballot.
Take care of #4 and I might vote.
I have to disagree here. Abstention is a form of protest vote.
I never understood why people think there is a problem if a lot of people don't vote. That means they are not unhappy with the status quo and don't care about the details. People like that are too ignorant to cast an informed ballot anyway. Imagine what kind of government we'd have if these people were somehow forced to vote. You know they'd all vote NDP.
randallg: not voting does not in any way mean I am "not unhappy with the status quo and don't care about the details". Even a cursory perusal of my blog, for example, would disabuse you of that notion and the notion that, were I to vote, I'd vote NDP.
This: People like that are too ignorant to cast an informed ballot anyway is just arrogant puffery in support of your own position.
In any case, you made 3 declarative statements; all of them wrong. Given that ratio, I'm sure you can understand why the fact that you can vote just thrills me to no end.
"I have to disagree here. Abstention is a form of protest vote."
Also worth considering: should all those who help elect dishonest politicians who steal be considered accomplices to those crimes.
I'm just sayin'.
I think the reason people don't vote is because, more and more of our governance has moved out of the control of the electorate.
Consider the Liberal-dominated Senate, made up of patronage appointments with no accountability and terms up to 45 years.
They refuse accountability, rejecting Harper's Accountability Act, passed by the elected House, that would have put the Senate under a non-Senatorial review.
Instead, the Senate insists on its members 'policing' itself. So- you have Colin Kenny sitting on the Committee to consider whether he abuse the fiscal trust with his useless trip to Dubai.
The Senate refuses to pass the House legislation to reduce Senatorial terms to 8 years.
It is threatening to refuse to pass the budget, passed by the House.
We have a totally unaccountable civil service, with over 3,000 positions, such as heads of public corporations, judges, ambassadors, deputy ministers all appointed without accountability. Under the Liberals of Chretien and Martin - these appointments became basic rewards for political agendas.
Our Charter, a Liberal document, has split the country into hereditary adversarial groups, defined by 'origin' - linguistic origin, ethnic and religious origin. It has set these groups up as political entities - fighting each other for political power and funds.
Essentially - what has happened in the past generation of Liberal rule, is that our gov't has been moved almost completely out of the control of the electorate, and into the hands of unelected power brokers - primarily in Ottawa-Montreal-Toronto.
No wonder the people don't vote. The real power doesn't rest in the House but in the private offices. Harper is trying to change this, and give power back to the provinces, back to the electorate - but - watch how the Senate is fighting him, how the Liberals and NDP are fighting him - to retain control in Ottawa. Watch how the MSM are fighting him.
ET wrote: "I think the reason people don't vote is because, more and more of our governance has moved out of the control of the electorate."
All of this is true, but it's even worse. The actual power brokers are not in politics or the civil service, but are the owners: Power Corp, Bombardier etc. Lurking in the background we have that malevolent spider, Maurice Strong, busy still doing his Master's business in China. John Rae, Paul Martin and all the other Power Corp alumni pull the strings, assisted by overseas interests like Elf, Bank Paribas and so on.
None of this is hidden. None of this is unknown to the Media, or to any voter with a computer and a bit of gumption and time. Why do we sit on our hands, then? Why don't Canadians rise up and throw the rascals out? Why do we continue to pay for the CBC, the PR machine for this system? Why do Canadians buy the Globe and Mail, the propaganda front for the Ottawa/Montreal axis of control?
Some of it is human nature, for comfort, or for a quiet life. Some of it is because Canada has always been a nation of company towns---indeed, it's a Company Nation now. And some of it is rejection of the American model of citizen action.
Most people just want to turn over and go back to sleep.
I see little hope for change unless that fundamental schizoid nature of this country is addressed: that is, until the French and the English power elites are separated into two independent and non-co-operating countries. Without this, a separation into West and East is the only other solution that gives hope for a different Canada.
I've been politically active during my entire adult life, and I never fail to vote. If someone is too apathetic to participate, I certainly don't want to see pressure applied, as in "do your civic duty". Anyone who doesn't care enough to vote probably doesn't have the faintest clue about public affairs, and who wants to see the results skewed by such people?
In Australia, where voting is mandatory, those who go to the polls merely to fulfil the obligation are known to politiicians as the "donkey voters".
Well said, ET. It amazed me to watch Liberals and NDPers recently argue against an elected Senate, claiming it would just result in more "old, white guys" in power. Talk about contempt toward voters and democracy! Not trusting the electorate, they claimed they wanted to maintain the power to appoint Senators to ensure diversity.
In reality, they do not trust democracy since it risks loosening their grip on power.
rdg, I don't care what you say on your blog. Obviously you do nothing but whine fruitlessly. So continue to let me make your political choices for you. I prefer it that way.
The poor leftist is just frustrated by the fact Alberta is the only province in Canada not in play next election...
I always vote but the whole exercise is arguably pointless - or worse than pointless - since it gives a false appearance of democratic control.
"There is something fundamentally wrong with a society who won't participate in one of the greatest freedoms we have. "
Yes. And that society is the actual GOVERNMENT itself. For the last 30 years,they have steadfastley refused to participate in the democractic system,instead opting for,and obtaing,a socialistic statism. Would you vote for the guy who stole your house,livelihood,and self-esteem? (No dippers/libbers allowed to answer.To easy a question for you guys). Canada needs a revolution,and from what I've been hearing,it will be the next generation,because they are actually getting pretty PO'd with the current system.
" Nothing good can come about when a small minority of people elects the body that will govern over all."
Nothing good can come about when a small minority of people over-run and over-ride the electorate. There. Fixed that for ya Dave.
when the people running for office are mental midgets, no offence to midgets, who the hell wants to vote.
Abstention is a form of protest vote.
Not really, it's a gift to the entrenched elite. It's viewed as indifference. It's viewed as permission. It reinforces the wrong message to the elected.
How can a functioning democracies continue if voter turnout is so abysmal?
Please reconsider your attitude.
randallg: your wish to make my political choices for me doesn't surprise me, nor does it make any of your past statements more correct. In any case, I've run in a federal election (PG/Bulkley Valley), I have my other political activities, and I lead a very full life. As well, ocasionally my complaints get results.
Had your original post been less arrogant and, well, correct in some fashion, you'd have received a better response from me. But I have only your posts here to go on; you're apparently presumptuous and still batting zero for however many.
randallg: and then I head over to your blog and find out that we do indeed have some significant common ground--it just didn't show up here on this issue.
Whenever I see anyone talking about voting and "responsibility", I reach for my pistol.
Patrick B - agreed - the PowerCorp, Desmarais, Mo Strong, Jean Chretien, Paul Martin, Bob Rae gang -they, along with Trudeau and his balkanizing charter, have made Canada into an oligarchy. The elected House is just a 'front' for legitimacy. But the real power is the unelected appointees, and the backroom gang (PowerCorp etc).
What they did, was to take over the country economically, and set up a political infrastructure that enabled them to operate without competition.
The political structure they set up divided the electorate into competing 'blocs' of special interests. Membership in the blocs is hereditary, by origin (language, ethnic, religion). Trudeau's Charter divided the country linguistically and made language a political force rather than a means of communication. So, money for languages became a competitive issue, decided by parl't.
Same with other 'origin' identities.
The agenda was to prevent a population from working collaboratively with each other to develop a Canadian identity. The agenda was to keep the population balkanized and focused on not getting along with each other - to obtain funding from the gov't. This created blocs-of-loyalty to the Liberals.
Then, economically, you tax the people at high rates. This prevents the dev't of an investor class. The PowerCorp and Desmarais group have no competitors in Canada; they run the show.
Then - you use taxpayer money to provide enormous subsidies to this group.
And so on.
The ratio of appointed to elected positions is ten to one. Over 3,000 appointed to 300 odd in the House.
Result? A divided balkanized population, well aware that they have no control over how they are governed.
And, an ideology of 'being Canadian' was developed. It was set up as 'Not-American'. That was a deliberate action of Chretien and Martin. It meant that criticizing anything Canadian wasn't done; instead - you criticized the US. Then, we were defined as 'tolerant, kind, open' blah blah - all nonsense of course, but the result is a passive, non-questioning population. One that stays home during the election.
The MSM was turned into a mouthpiece of gov't (CBC); Research and dev't became a mouthpiece of gov't - and the Conference Board recently told us how dismal our research output is, how we don't innovate, don't question.
However, I see a change - and the most important reason for this change - is blogs. Finally, the people have a Voice. Rather than being passive recipients - they are beginning to have a Voice. And are able to hear others, to talk about issues. To question.
A few years ago - such issues as multiculturalism, bilingualism - would never, ever, have been questioned. Now - they are. A few years ago- we insisted we were 'Da Best' - as Chretien kept informing us. Now- we can question that.
So- hopefully, over time - we can kick the oligarchs out and become, again, an empowered electorate.
The parasites we have to choose from are not worth the effort. Besides, their policies will always lead to banality - and the path of greatest mediocrity.
Politicians are self serving sycophants, subordinating good public policy for electability and getting an office budget.
To tie veterans, personal freedoms, and liberties contained within voting to the mental and moral lightwieghts in politics is simply naive.
The courts (vis a vis the Charter) are the best recourse for citizens against government and the greasy political parties that infest our democracy.
I think we should consider the possibility that citizens should get, per jurisdiction, one vote for every $1,000 of taxes they have payed in said jurisdiction since the last election thereto. He who pays the piper calls the tune. (This is where I run for the hills again, don't worry, I know the route.)
The hills are alive..to the sound of...
Vitruvius - before you dash for high ground, what about the situation where the Ones Who Call the Tunes are not elected, are appointed, are buddies of 'Da Boss'.
Oh, and they either don't pay taxes on msot of their perks or and most certainly, use every tax break and brown paper bag they can use - whether it be registering your ships in a foreign country (Paul Martin); or money paid for no work (Adscam); or defining the money as dividends, or the taxpayer purchasing their bubble gum (I'm entitled to my entitlements: Dingbat) or their vacation trips (Pettigrew, Senator Colin Kenny); or having your house remodeled by your office staff, or hiring your sons, daughters, wives and grandmothers; or defining their house as an office, or....
So - hey, stop running, stop running...can you hear me??? - Vitruvius! What about all the tactics that the 'rich' use to not pay taxes?
The last council election here in Toronto that returned the socialist Miller to power along with most of his leftist cronies is a perfect example of voter apathy. Several friends didn't bother to vote because the conservative mayoralty candidate, Jane Pitfield, didn't meet all their criteria so they gave it a pass. Of course the teachers, homeless industry and other groups with a vested interest in keeping the socialist tax agenda rolling along all voted.
Now we are faced with a myriad of new "revenue tools" (ie. taxes) but whenever my friends complain I remind them, you didn't vote so you can't complain!
IMHO voting is a privledge and the cornerstone of our democracy, I know ET such as it is, and every citizen should exercise that right. I will never understand people that say with pride, I don't vote.
If a rich person used tactics to avoid taxes, ET, then under my non-proposed scheme they would have less votes to cast.
no, no, vitruvius - I know that. My point is that the rich crooked person actually runs the show. They are the 'ones who call the tune'; they are the Unelected, the Behind The Scenes Bosses.
So-whoever is the winner in an election, isn't the Person Who Runs the Country. It's the unelected who do that.
So- who cares who is elected, if the elected person has no real power?
I care, ET, because I'd like to see democracy work, because as Sir Winston noted, it's better than anything else we have. But is the current fashion for hyper-egalatrian voting tenable in the long term? All previously successful democracies have had mitigating constraints placed on the lower-half of the Gaussian distribution. Can we afford not to?
Yes, the lower half, or let's say, lower quarter, of the Gaussin distribution can't make the decisions. Depending on your variables - and the are pretty basic: being a certain age, being of sound mind (or is that a value?). Aristotle included ownership of property but that would never hold in modern times.
My concern is with Gauss's upper 1%. That percentile are the ones who run the country - and we, the rest of the people, haven't voted for them. They are the appointed or the Buddies. The Senate, for example, has just shelved the Motion passed by the House to limit their Senatorial terms.
So, it's not the voting that concerns me; it's the lack of checks and balances in the Canadian political system that would prevent that 1% from moving in and taking over the political authority.
I love it when others don't vote. It increases the value of MY vote!!
Someone who has given up on voting, well, I really don't want them involved in the process. More influence for me.
Tomorrow the days start getting shorter again. And then in six months, they start getting longer again. Remember that whenever you solve your biggest problem, your second biggest problem becomes your biggest problem. Only a dead man's in-basket is empty.
Good points ET (as usual). I think you're right. The reason most people don't vote is that their vote really makes no difference on several levels. First, many of the effective organs of power are in the hands of unelected, entrenched elites e.g. the courts using the charter of "rights" and "freedoms" to effectively make up new laws at whim; the unelected senate which can stonewall the elected parliament; an entrenched bureaucracy which lobbies for its own perpetuation and benefit at the expense of the taxpayers who properly should be seen as the bosses; grossly over centralized decision making which effectively hands control to the most dysfunctional whiners who can pawn responsibility for their demands onto every one but themselves; taxpayer funded news media that spews out endless left wing propaganda. The list goes on. The only ones who seem to have gotten in right are the Swiss (and I don't pretend to be an expert on their system), but it seems they've been able to tie voting, decision-making, and acceptance of the consequences of those decisions together.
It doesn't matter who you vote for, the government always gets in.
So I don't vote, it just encourages them.
Cheers
The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.
-- Plato
ET, Vitri, David. Yes, much of what you say is true and relevant. It was postulated by on my poli sci profs in the mid 80s that our low regard for politicians was in proportion to the scope of our expectations of them. IOW, we lost respect for the political class when statism in our economies grew most rampant. The nanny state of Trudeau's Just Society, (indeed Pearson before him) was an impossible dream. Maybe Jane Jacobs was right when she argued the bureaucratic(?) and entepreneurial class shouldn't "go the same parties", or corruption would inevitably result.
That is where we are today, yes, ruled by oligarchs having legal rather than moral authority authority over our lives. Was Erich Fromm right, do we want to escape our freedom? Is is too inconvenient, interfering with our quality time?
I certainly hope not, and the electorate can come to their senses after the writ is dropped, though we have seen some bizarre results in the last couple of generations.
I don't think it's apathy so much as confusion and disinterest that keeps many Canadians away from the polls. I don't think our freedoms are fleeting, but I must admit at least a little bit of embarassment when Iraqis and Afghans turn out at 75%, despite death threats, to vote.
Complacency is our enemy, not apathy.
I'm for assigning weight to people's votes:
Unemployed/student: 1 point
Employed: 2 points
Employer: 3 points
Military or ex-military: 3 points
I agree, Shamrock, but is not the ability to afford to be complacent one of our ultimate goals? Did Aristotle not say that we fight wars so that we may live in peace?
There are numerous ways to have political impact and voting is only one of them. In my opinion, it's also one of the least effective. Further, a decision to not vote should signal neither indifference nor a lack of insight. Just a couple of quick examples: the powers-that-were in the old Soviet Union weren't voted out, nor was Nixon. It's also worth considering that a mandatory vote can be used by the duplicitous to claim an undeserved mandate, as in "hey, everybody voted--and I won".
In other words, I think the original article was arrogant, presumptuous, misguided posturing. I'm sure it's important in the great scheme of things that the author meant well.
sean: re "assigning weights"...
I'm not saying it's a perfect idea, but it sparkles.
Good one.
Just to play devil's advocate sean...what about the unemployed who are NOT on the official lists,i.e. not working yet but booted off UI? What about the homeless? What about those on WCB?
And students get 0 points. Until they have lived under,and paid taxes to the system,they have know idea how they are getting screwed. And what about the retirees?
hey - I did vote during the last federal election - I just handed back a blank ballot - which expresses my view perfectly - and (which I hope) keeps the money away from the parties.
Does anyone know if a blank ballot reduces the amount the party parasites can lay claim to under the eletion financing law?
There's got to be a way for an individual to remove themselves from beign forced to contribute to political parties...no?
Someone observed in the Calgary Herald that in the Calgary Elbow, the Liberal turnout has been very consistent in the 4000 range over the last few elections, while the PC vote has plumetted to a fraction of what it was years ago. This suggests a lot of disappointment with Stelmach's regime, which doesn't "get" Calgary. Also, there were local issues that brought people out to vote for the Liberal guy, who has been involved locally for years.
Ron: Not long ago in my community a city councilor election with ~400 voters was declared a tie after a recount. Meaning a single vote would have made the difference. Granted, this is obviously a rare case and federal elections have ~10x as many voters but since you didn't specify that you have some sort of maximum voter criteria I have to conclude you don't vote in smaller elections either. Anyway, in the case cited above your vote does in fact matter.
In any election in which there is a non-zero chance that your vote can matter, and voting is quick and easy, you have no business calling yourself a libertarian, or minarchist, or whatever it is you call yourself, if you can't get off your duff and go vote for the least statist option. And there is almost always a less statist option, don't give me any Mike Harris=Bob Rae baloney.
I can say that I did my part to defeat the uberStatist Liberals and replace them with the slightly less statist Liberals by voting CPC. You can't (and no, Stephane Dion != Stephen Harper). Therefore, you are part of the problem of statism, not part of the solution. You consent to statism, I actively oppose statism.
The CPC won last election by about 10,000 votes out of 14,845,680 votes cast. That's a pretty slim margin, man. It is not reasonable to suggest Marxist Poli Sci professor Stephane Dion and his band of institutional daycare pimping Reds are less or equally statist as the CPC. Therefore, it is your duty to vote, and vote appropriately, next election.
"duty?????
Blecchhhh, spflooey...
Free people don't have duties.
Andrew, as much as I appreciate the tone of your post, and I'm not being sarcastic, how about you deal with the statist fools your way, and I'll deal with them mine.
"Free people don't have duties."
Neither do leprechauns, but that's another debate. So what's the deal with libertarians hating conservatives more than statists, anyway? The average "internet" libertarian seems to hate Jesus more than taxes, I think.
Which conservatives aren't statists?
Ron Good thinks Kate McMillan is equally statist as Robert McClelland of MyBlahg. Kathy Shaidle is equally statist as Warren Kinsella. Everything is morally relative, remember? He needs to ask a conservative what is statist and what isn't.
What a clever, clever fellow this libertarian Ron Good is! I applaud his uncanny ability to distinguish between extemely different levels of support of statism and act on it! Good for you, Ronald! Good for you!
Get off your soapbox. This site is going down hill and of late is showing from the posts exactly what's wrong with most blogging sites; they start off interesting THEN the wacked "fringe" set end up getting onboard in droves with collective voices that more times than not, lack factual basis, insight and depth.
This is likely to be my last stop at this site; free speech is great but oftentimes makes for poor reading....