2015 Federal Election Thoughts

I'm going to go vote today. I plan on walking to the advanced poll and getting there just before they open. I'm voting ABC (anybody but Conservative), which in this riding (Calgary Confederation) basically means the Liberals.

I'm not terribly fond of the Liberals right now, because they voted for C-51. However, I absolutely hate what the Conservatives have done to this country, and since I can only vote for an MP, not the whole government, I'm going to do my best to deny the Conservatives another seat in Calgary. The New Democrats (who have my heart, if not my vote) trail well behind the Liberals, who actually stand a chance of being elected, here, in "Fortress Alberta".

I'm hoping the leaders of the Liberals and New Democrats see what we are doing and form a coalition government, because that is clearly what Canadians want them to do. My desires for a new government:

1. The Conservatives defeated, hopefully utterly.
   
2. Repeal C-51. No secret police.
   
3. Repeal C-24. No second class citizenship - a Canadian is a Canadian.
   
4. Bring in proportional representation so we don't find ourselves in this mess again unless (shudder) a *true majority* of Canadians want it. I'd be happy with Australian style mandatory voting too.
   
5. Govern well, with an eye to a fair and sustainable future for all Canadians, and doing our best among the other countries.

I'm certainly going to be writing Matt Grant (the Liberal candidate in my riding) to encourage him to do all that.

As to why I'm voting in the advanced poll, rather than waiting until voting day? I don't want to give the Conservatives a chance to deny my vote. If there is anything fishy about casting my ballot, I'd rather have a solid week to fix it and tell everyone about it, then be stuck at the last minute. That it's come to this because of Conservative voter suppression tactics and straight-up election fraud, makes me weep for my country. No time like the present to take it back.