It makes me sad

Never have I been so confident and comfortable with my own political views. Yet I remain incapable of aligning them successfully to any of the major parties' platforms in the upcoming federal Canadian election. But this is not what is most troubling. Most of all, I find it disconcerting that in our “vibrant” democracy, my vote counts less than someone who happens to live in another riding blessed with a smaller population. It's also weird that my riding is regarded as a Liberal fiefdom, just like others are Conservative, its population's views as immovable and static as the concrete of their condos.

Electoral reform was first brought up in the current (thankfully almost over) campaign by Jack Layton, then touched on by Stephen Harper, then brushed aside by Paul Martin. Jack's NDPs, of course, have the most to gain by proportional representation, which is why Stephen Harper talked about Senate reform, and why Paul Martin put his head in the sand. However, not even Jack had the political savvy to underline that proportional representation is more democratic. That's because...

Why I can't vote for the NDP

Jack has an activist mentality. For him, democracy is something you lobby for and siphon off towards your "core constituents”. Layton doesn't even want to be prime minister, he'd rather criticize from the sidelines, which is what he'll end up doing. Listen to his response to Steve Paikin during the second CBC debate: he couldn't say that he wanted to be Prime Minister. If he were to be elected, you'd see an instant “Oh shit!” reaction, though he'd probably actually say “For goodness' sake”. Someone prove to me that Jack Layton is not an obsessive compulsive activist lunatic. Look at him and listen to him. He is self-absorbed by his own rhetoric. He gesticulates in Hitlerian fashion. The sound of his own voice titillates him to near orgasm.

His platform consists of paying lip service to traditional socialist ideas, and transforming our health care into a value instead of admitting that it's a service. Ultimately, Jack is still a demagogue: the kind that narrows in on the people he thinks he can brainwash.

Why I can't vote for the Liberals

The biggest demagogues in this election are the Liberals. They will say absolutely anything to get into power: they are definitely power sluts. I agree with both the Conservatives and the NDP when they say that it's time for change, that the Liberals are the party of entitlement and corruption. The attack ads and anti-American stance is annoying. The Chrétien/Martin Liberal party has attracted the worst kind of politician: the Machiavellians and the demagogues. Paul Martin pisses me off with his scratchy-voice fake passion pleas. He's going to save Canada? My ass. Please, if you could just clarify what you want to do if you get elected, you might have a chance of convincing me.

Actually, probably not. Re-electing the Liberals would mean that Canadians approve of a government that accepts small amounts of corruption as matters of operational cost and a diminishing role in international affairs, although on the latter item Martin has done better than Chrétien.

On a positive note, Canada is now one of 3 countries in the world to recognize gay marriage. It should be proud of this. But is this because of the Liberals? Their arms had to be twisted. Wasn't it the judicial system that upheld homo rights? So let's get real when we talk about “progressive” Canadians uniting under a Liberal banner. Sounds like flattery to me.

Why I can't vote for the Conservatives

Throughout this campaign, Stephen Harper has, in my opinion, been the most convincing of all the leaders. I find myself agreeing with many of his ideas in terms of fighting gun crime, government accountability, addressing the fiscal imbalance etc. But I still don't like him. Unlike many Canadians, I don't think he'll build an Aryan super-soldier camp in Alberta and start a national gay bashing campaign. Having said that, he has not convinced me that he would, in fact, stand up strongly for gay and other minority rights in the way that I think the leader of Canada should. I can't vote for a social conservative. I can't vote for a party that has not squarely addressed the points for which it is criticized most strongly and frequently. Even the Liberals have done some of that.

Conclusion

So, as you can see, I can't vote for any of the big parties. I don't even know if I can vote for the Greens because in the past they've attracted crazies from both left and right. Where's that Natural Law party when you need it?