It’s election time: in Regina, the city I live in; in Saskatchewan, the province I live in; in BC, a couple of provinces over; in the US, the country I live next to.
When I was in my early 20s living in Ontario during a provincial election, we put up a sign in our front yard reading, “Don’t vote, it only encourages them.”
Now I am older and wiser and think it is better to vote for the lesser of two evils than to help elect the more evil party or candidate by not voting.
And when you vote, be thoughtful about your choices. My criteria for who to vote for (feel free to follow my lead! or not to…) is whichever party or candidate will fight to:
— Increase equity, e.g. through a basic annual income program to reduce poverty, through expanding Medicare so it will cover costs related to medications, vision care, and dental care
— Eliminate white supremacism (pretty obvious why, except perhaps to white supremacists) by making system-wide changes
— Urgently take effective action to address the climate crisis
Guided by your personal values, decide what’s important to you and vote accordingly!