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(Cross-posted at aceofthorns.tumblr.com)
Right now, I should be sifting through my ComicCon “footage”, pulling together some kind of after-thought piece on OPERATION FROZEN MUSTANG, but… oh hell, there HAD to be an election in the UK. An election in which I had a wholly unexpected part to play…
I was pretty disillusioned with British politics after the EU referendum, and the 2010 general election where I voted for the Liberal Democrats, in direct opposition to the unemployed-hating Conservatives, only for the LibDems to commit electoral suicide by forming a coalition with the Tories, enabling Tory hate-crimes against the unemployed and the disabled. This time round, I had intended to vote for an independent candidate, rather than let my vote go completely to waste… until Prime Minister Theresa May - who became PM solely by replacing David Cameron as leader of the Tories - started talking about banning internet encryption (making all our communications vulnerable to criminals - AND TERRORISTS) and tearing up human rights laws to get at terrorists (EXACTLY what the TERRORISTS want).
Instead of sitting on the sidelines, I decided to make an active contribution to the political discourse. I voted for the current MP for my constituency.
He retained his seat by TWO VOTES. In an election where the Tories were stopped EIGHT SEATS short of an outright majority.
I, a solitary voter, had made a difference, through my change of heart. I don’t view myself as some kind of king-maker, and I certainly don’t expect any special treatment. Even so, I find myself feeling so much more RELEVANT than ever before, even if just for one shining moment.
To make things even sweeter, the party held two votes short of winning were the LibDems, who seven years earlier sold my vote to the Tories. Payback is, as they say, a bitch.
And finally…
Right now, I should be sifting through my ComicCon “footage”, pulling together some kind of after-thought piece on OPERATION FROZEN MUSTANG, but… oh hell, there HAD to be an election in the UK. An election in which I had a wholly unexpected part to play…
I was pretty disillusioned with British politics after the EU referendum, and the 2010 general election where I voted for the Liberal Democrats, in direct opposition to the unemployed-hating Conservatives, only for the LibDems to commit electoral suicide by forming a coalition with the Tories, enabling Tory hate-crimes against the unemployed and the disabled. This time round, I had intended to vote for an independent candidate, rather than let my vote go completely to waste… until Prime Minister Theresa May - who became PM solely by replacing David Cameron as leader of the Tories - started talking about banning internet encryption (making all our communications vulnerable to criminals - AND TERRORISTS) and tearing up human rights laws to get at terrorists (EXACTLY what the TERRORISTS want).
Instead of sitting on the sidelines, I decided to make an active contribution to the political discourse. I voted for the current MP for my constituency.
He retained his seat by TWO VOTES. In an election where the Tories were stopped EIGHT SEATS short of an outright majority.
I, a solitary voter, had made a difference, through my change of heart. I don’t view myself as some kind of king-maker, and I certainly don’t expect any special treatment. Even so, I find myself feeling so much more RELEVANT than ever before, even if just for one shining moment.
To make things even sweeter, the party held two votes short of winning were the LibDems, who seven years earlier sold my vote to the Tories. Payback is, as they say, a bitch.
And finally…
