What will it take to win MY vote this election?
October 10, 2007 | 03:57 PM
It's simple actually. I want to be wooed. Yes. Wooed by politicians. When I say that out loud, I realize that I've been single far too long. Still, I want to be courted by my prospective MLAs and their respective parties. I am quite aware that my vote cannot be bought so instead I want the candidates to invest energy and time in me. I want to feel special. Like my vote really does matter to them.
I plan on trying to meet my candidates in person. I want answers to my questions. Honest ones if at all possible. I'll even accept "I don't know" as an answer. Our candidates are only human, aren't they? I will get online and check out each party's election platform. Is there a real plan? Is it doable? Does it align with my values? Of course, I will take in the day-to-day media coverage. One can surely expect some good mudslinging this election. How it is done will be of more interest to me. There's a difference between a ongoing debate that challenges the candidates to respond intelligently, if at all possible, versus an exchange that is simply the result of someone's inferiority complex. The soundbite issues of the day will be important as I will measure the validity of even broaching the topics in the first place to what I hope are solid ideas being expressed. Who knows? I may be reaching a little too far on this one.
What matters most to me this election? First, I want investment in healthcare. Why do we need lotteries and charities to generate funding for hospital equipment? When I lived in the US, I was fortunate to have excellent health insurance. When I needed an MRI, it was scheduled and completed the following day. When I needed arthroscopic surgery, it was scheduled and completed the following week. Secondly, and this is the big one, I want sustainability in planning from urban growth to environmental management and from education and social programs. We need to take care of ourselves and each other as well as what we already have, and do so in the most efficient and economical way. Lastly, as I said before, I want to feel special and heard. But more importantly, I want a government who will hear all of us choosing to live in Saskatchewan. I want a government who realizes that the taxpayers pay their salaries and truly serve us the best that they can.
Comments: (2)
Of course you're going to want to feel special; it's a natural human feeling, and politicians are experts are pretending to give it to us. We've all seen it before. They'll do and say anything to get reelected, then ignore us for the next four years. Then, when election time rolls around again, they run out and play Santa Claus. And people will always fall for it, time after time. Watching politicians woo me makes me feel sickened, not special.
You do make a good point about healthcare, but in the end, you seem to think that throwing even more money at a broken system will magically fix the problems. That's what our governments have tried for years, because it's a nice-sounding, politically safe thing to do. That way we can all feel good about medicare while people die on the waiting lists. How nice.
Posted October 20, 2007 02:01 PM
are you on ludes? you want the politicians to make you "FEEL SPECIAL", you want to be "WOOED", you want to be "COURTED", really, and you say you don't want to be bought! you want to meet with them in person, maybe while their sitting on your couch, you can put your head on their shoulder, and they can stroke your hair too! thats what i hate about so many voters, it's all about me! me, me, me, me! whether it's a gov't worker(voting to save MY job), or a student(voting to lower MY tuition) or a senior(wanting cheap drugs for ME!) all about ME! rather than voting for whats good for the province as a whole, ie, lowering the provincial debt, now that our dollar is par, improving highways and infrastructure, address education and the taxes that fund it! there are so many more broad issues that we shouldn't be focused on the ME items. just to address one more thing, you want more investment in health care! do you have any idea what percentage of the provincial gov'ts TOTAL budget goes health care, it's not 10% nor is it 27%, it's 50% or just a little better! if you only knew the number of levels and the amount of money spent on the administration, you'd be sickened.
Posted October 14, 2007 10:34 AM