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Its a bit late for me this year, but I have to say something about the other Thursday experience which comes round in different forms, but pretty much every two years - the vote. On May 3rd, the nation will vote for who they want in the Welsh Assembly Government.
Now we as TTFE members do embrace the concept of democracy and equal say pretty closely in my opinion. We are a community, and anything which happens to it - be it a threat, a meal for someone's birthday, a football game rule or even the treatment of non-members is discussed to some degree with deliberation and discussion on here. If we didn't, this wouldn't be a forum. As a real advocate for the vote and democracy in general, I now ask you to think about matters bigger than TTFE (yes, there is a life outside TTFE you need to think about too).
With that out the way I will get to the point. Voter apathy is at an all time low with the expected turnout for this year's Assembly elections at a meagre 37%. That means just over a third of Welsh people will go to the polls on Thursday and that fact sickens me. As you may have noticed from me in the forum previously that this subject is close to my heart; one which is so important to us all and yet we show it very little respect. And all it takes is a matter of minutes. This year you will have two boxes to tick - you dont have to pick the same party twice - one is for the local representitive and the other is for the party in general.
I am not trying to sway anyone into voting for my favoured party, as I'm sure a lot of you who read my blog will know where my sympathies lie. What Im trying to do here is get people to vote. If you all vote already, thats great. But all those of you who havent in the past and know very little about it, I beg to place your vote for someone. It's not voting for the sake of it - you are giving your opinion on how you want the assembly to go forward; the assembly meaning YOUR country.
So what do you do if you are unsure of who to vote for? There are a number of things you can do to make up your mind and in some cases your ideal candidate or party comes easy to you. I hope this guide is not too condescending as I certainly mean to be.
Look at the leaflets
You all that election crap that comes through the door? Yeah it pisses me off too, especially now theres so much more of it. Well give some of it a read - you may like what you uncover. Some of them are really explicit about what they want to do in your area and may not write in 'politican speak'. Politics isn't just about the economy, who we should go to war on next and stuff you wouldn't necessarilt think about - its about stuff which affects you everyday. If one party says they will tidy up Cardiff and you think your area is looking shitty of late, its worth a shot to give that party a go. If one leaflet appeals to you, keep the name in mind and remember him/her for your first tick box (local candidate).
Read the news and blogs
The mainstream media will give a lot away about what some parties stand for and pledge in their manifestos. Failing that, a number of blogs out there will show the kind of things some parties are doing this year to grab your vote. You may know that the Lib Dems this year are really big on public services this year and the Tories are larging it on green issues and on the environment.
And if you're really stuck....
I have found a really good site by the BBC which place everything about the parties in one digestible chunk. You just pick the three most important issues to you and sift through the parties to see what they plan to do if they are elected. That should make your mind up and pick your second box for you (overall party).
I tried to use the old 'Who Should You Vote For?' site which was designed for the 2005 General Election but sadly that has taken down. But I hope that information is enough for you to make up your mind and cast your vote this Thursday. You can even do it before TTFE as polls close at 9pm in most places!
So please vote!
_________________
"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear"
-Mark Twain
Now we as TTFE members do embrace the concept of democracy and equal say pretty closely in my opinion. We are a community, and anything which happens to it - be it a threat, a meal for someone's birthday, a football game rule or even the treatment of non-members is discussed to some degree with deliberation and discussion on here. If we didn't, this wouldn't be a forum. As a real advocate for the vote and democracy in general, I now ask you to think about matters bigger than TTFE (yes, there is a life outside TTFE you need to think about too).
With that out the way I will get to the point. Voter apathy is at an all time low with the expected turnout for this year's Assembly elections at a meagre 37%. That means just over a third of Welsh people will go to the polls on Thursday and that fact sickens me. As you may have noticed from me in the forum previously that this subject is close to my heart; one which is so important to us all and yet we show it very little respect. And all it takes is a matter of minutes. This year you will have two boxes to tick - you dont have to pick the same party twice - one is for the local representitive and the other is for the party in general.
I am not trying to sway anyone into voting for my favoured party, as I'm sure a lot of you who read my blog will know where my sympathies lie. What Im trying to do here is get people to vote. If you all vote already, thats great. But all those of you who havent in the past and know very little about it, I beg to place your vote for someone. It's not voting for the sake of it - you are giving your opinion on how you want the assembly to go forward; the assembly meaning YOUR country.
So what do you do if you are unsure of who to vote for? There are a number of things you can do to make up your mind and in some cases your ideal candidate or party comes easy to you. I hope this guide is not too condescending as I certainly mean to be.
Look at the leaflets
You all that election crap that comes through the door? Yeah it pisses me off too, especially now theres so much more of it. Well give some of it a read - you may like what you uncover. Some of them are really explicit about what they want to do in your area and may not write in 'politican speak'. Politics isn't just about the economy, who we should go to war on next and stuff you wouldn't necessarilt think about - its about stuff which affects you everyday. If one party says they will tidy up Cardiff and you think your area is looking shitty of late, its worth a shot to give that party a go. If one leaflet appeals to you, keep the name in mind and remember him/her for your first tick box (local candidate).
Read the news and blogs
The mainstream media will give a lot away about what some parties stand for and pledge in their manifestos. Failing that, a number of blogs out there will show the kind of things some parties are doing this year to grab your vote. You may know that the Lib Dems this year are really big on public services this year and the Tories are larging it on green issues and on the environment.
And if you're really stuck....
I have found a really good site by the BBC which place everything about the parties in one digestible chunk. You just pick the three most important issues to you and sift through the parties to see what they plan to do if they are elected. That should make your mind up and pick your second box for you (overall party).
I tried to use the old 'Who Should You Vote For?' site which was designed for the 2005 General Election but sadly that has taken down. But I hope that information is enough for you to make up your mind and cast your vote this Thursday. You can even do it before TTFE as polls close at 9pm in most places!
So please vote!
_________________
"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear"
-Mark Twain