Happy American Elections Tuesday OH EIGHT!

Last time there was an American presidential election, it was between John Kerry and George W. Bush and I was in a coma. Well, okay, maybe I had just gotten out of a coma, but I was pretty much immobile, stuck in a hospital bed connected to a series of tubes that were not the internet and it was just not fun.

So this time, I get to have a homemade dinner, drink a little wine, knit a scarf and watch the Daily Show/Colbert Report at 10pm and NOT be in a coma, yet still have little say in who I want the American president to be. Yay for freedom!

According to Torontoist:

10:47 p.m.—Alright, we’re ready to project the winner. According to the votes coming in, Canadians—by an overwhelming majority—have elected Barack Obama as their next prime minister.

Yay!

But not really. It looks like most of us were right after all and Stephen Harper wins another minority government.  It seems like neither the NDP, the Bloc nor the Greens upset the results  like I had anticipated. The Conservatives chipped away at the Liberal base and won more seats, but it was still not enough to get the majority they wanted.   Ah well, better luck next time, Mr. Harper! Maybe he needs more kittens.

I came home and voted. I stood at the ballot for a few minutes while I had a last minute crisis of conscience about who to vote for.  Without going too much into it, there were policies that my Liberal MP incumbent supported… or rather didn’t support… that went against my moral principles which is why I voted for NDP during the last federal election. Today, I kept going back and forth about voting with my conviction, which would sort have been towards the Green party this time around, or voting strategically against Harper.  I chose the latter, but in doing so, I felt a little ill about it.  I comfort myself a little by reminding myself that I do agree a lot with the liberal platform. It’s just this guy, I didn’t really want to re-hire.

The policy in question is done and over with, I hope. Ironically, Stephen Harper himself put an end to that, which satisfied me to some extent.  So this time around, it’s all about the economy and climate issues.   Let’s hope that the worst we get is a Conservative minority, again.

Canadian elections will be on Tuesday, October 14th.  None of these candidates really impress me, with the exception of Elizabeth May, but we all know she won’t be Prime Minister.  I’ve voted NDP in the past, but moreso out of protest against the Liberal MP incumbent in my riding.  I’m not really a socialist though, and right now, one of my prime concerns is economy and getting Harper’s awful environmental policies out of office.   In any case, I feel all the campaigns have been so uninspiring.  So, in lieu of any real interest, here’s a picture of our current Prime Minister with a kitten.

October 14th… get informed and go vote!

• Conservative Party
• Liberal Party
• New Democratic Party
• Green Party
• Bloc Quebecois

Tonight!  I’ve purchased cheap frozen snacks and Doritos and in about an hour or whenever, I’m going to prop myself in front of the telly and watch the Vice Presidential Debates. The U.S. Election has become my favourite reality show. And it’s silly because I can’t even vote on it, and our Canadian candidate debates are on tonight, but that doesn’t matter because I already know who I’m voting for and what our issues are. But the US debates will have the potential to entertain. Yes, I will totally admit, I’m a sucker for Sarah Palin drama.

I’ve grown from disliking her immensely to absolutely being fascinated with her.  I’ve hoped to gawd that Americans don’t elect McCain and Palin into office, but now I’m pretty much complacent on whatever the outcome will be.  Don’t get me wrong, I’d be happy if the Dems win the elections, but I’m just hoping whatever happens won’t affect me too much. And maybe I can giggle a little bit in superiority … unless we elect in our own Conservative majority, in which case, that’ll make me sad.

Still, Sarah Palin is plain awesome. Joe Six Pack Lipstick Pitbull Barracuda awesome. I’m not even expecting all that much drama tonight, and I’m quite aware that she may actually do a lot better than expected. But it’s just all part of the great reality show. And I’m hunkering down, eating doritos and enjoying it.