This issue of The Voice Magazine is a little bit thinner than normal. Columnists S.D. Livingston and Christina Frey are taking a break for a while to recharge the writing batteries and concentrate on some other projects. So while I wish them success, I selfishly hope for not too much success. I still want them to have the time and inclination to write for the magazine, after all.
However, aside from that bit of news, things are back to normal now. If you don’t follow the AUSUVoice Facebook page, you probably don’t know about how we managed to hack ourselves here at the Voice Magazine, and what problems that lead to. Let’s just say that there were some red faces all around.
Readers from last issue will be wondering about the surprise I hinted at. Would it count as surprising for me to say it’s not happening yet? Probably not. Dealing with the website issues kind of blew some other plans out of the water, but rest assured, I do plan to get back on it over the next week and should have it out. If you want a clue, I’ll just remind people to sign up to our subscription/reminder email list because that’s where secret contests and surveys get announced.
Of course the big news this week is that the long-running, never-ending federal campaign is finally coming to a close. Advance polls are open now throughout this Thanksgiving weekend, and if you know that then you likely already know who you plan to vote for. If you’re still waiting, wondering which way you should go, I’m trying to get some coverage of the educational stances of all the parties put together for next week.
Until then, I know you’ve probably already heard how important it is to go vote, how your vote is important and can change things, but, let’s be honest, most of us know that the election won’t be won by a single vote. That if you don’t vote for the winning candidate in your riding, your vote will essentially be thrown away. That, in our first-past-the-post system, the majority of all votes will have no effect on who we have governing us, and that can be not only disheartening, but discouraging. I understand why people don’t vote. Even if the effort is minimal, voting implies an act of hopefulness, and if you live in a riding like I do, where the same candidate seems to have a lock on the seat, it can seem like all a vote is saying is that you’re naïve.
Vote anyway. If not this weekend, then next Monday. If you don’t like any of the major parties, vote for a fringe party, a fringe candidate, or even just spoil your ballot. But get in there and vote.
Why? Because the best way to effect the change we want is to convince the politicians, the government, that we’re watching. If we want good governance, we have to show the political parties that we’re paying attention. After all, the temptation to do the wrong thing is easier to fight if you feel someone is paying attention. I don’t subscribe to the notion that politicians are evil, but they are human. And humans are prone to taking short cuts if they can get away with it. Convince them that we’re watching?even if we’re not.
Enjoy the read!
