Well, here it is, the day after the election, and we seem to be back to where we started: with a minority Conservative government. For those of us who did not want to see Stephen Harper back in power there was much debate as to whether one should vote with their conscience or vote strategically. That is to say, should you vote for a party whose values most coincide with your own, even though that party might not get enough seats to make an impact, or should you vote strategically, which would mean voting for a party you don't necessarily believe in purely to shut out the Conservatives?

Throughout the campaign I was conflicted about which way I was going to go. What bothered me most was the widely-held opinion that voting with my conscience would be the same as "throwing my vote away." I felt I was being told that my vote was worthless unless I didn't pull with the rest and do my part to keep Stephen Harper out. I wanted to see Tories ousted as much as the next person, but there was something about strategic voting that rubbed me the wrong way. I remembered how it had been an issue during the last election in the U.S. The contention there was that if you voted for the independent candidate, Ralph Nader, even if you agreed with his policies, you would be splitting the Democrat vote, which would allow George Bush back in for another four years. In essence you would be wasting your vote. 

The way I saw it, strategic voting meant voting out of fear, rather than voting for who I felt best reflected my values. The idea of voting out of fear seems to go against the democratic spirit of having an election in the first place. I have no idea how many Americans voted "strategically" in their last election, or how many Canadians did the same yesterday. All I know is Bush was re-elected then and now we have Mr. Harper back with another minority government. 

In the end, I have to confess that I did vote strategically, rather than with my conscience. My wife contends that they could both be seen as the same thing. I believe she has a point. And who knows, perhaps my strategic vote helped to stop Mr. Harper from coming back with a majority, which was his reason for having this election in the first place. 

Which brings me back to the concept of the "wasted" vote. Apparently, voter turn-out yesterday was lowest it's been for many years. I think something like 49% of Canadians didn't vote. I'm sure they had their reasons. And while I don't agree with not voting as an option, I'm beginning to see the temptation of going that way. Now here comes the part of our electoral system that I (like many Canadians, I think) just don't understand. It is the way that a party can get a certain number of votes and still not get a seat in parliament. The lack of proportional representation.  If voting for the party of your choice doesn't actually bring them any closer to being able to represent your values, then I can fully understand the futility someone might feel in casting a vote at all. 

I recently discovered a web site called Fair Vote Canada and will have to give it a closer look to see if I can understand the whole issue better. But it is obvious that the system we currently have is not representing us fairly. When it does, maybe we will see more people exercising their right to vote.

Today is the 7th anniversary of Thelma and I coming to to live on PEI. We found ourselves in Charlottetown for the day and ended up having lunch at Italian eatery, Sirenella. Thelma had been there many years ago and this was my first time. The decor and atmosphere reminded us of when we were in Florence (way back in 2003). We both had the special, which was fettucine with prosciutto and mushrooms in a cream sauce. Very delish!

Walking back to the car, we noticed a crowd near Province House (home of the provincial legislature and The Birthplace of Canadian Confederation) and remembered that it was a rally to bring attention to the plight of PEI farmers. Some speeches were made by politicians and farmers, but the best part was an impromptu protest song in which all the crowd got to join in by chanting "May Day! May Day! May Day!"

In 2001, when Thelma and I first moved here, my goal was to focus solely on my writing. It is fitting, then, to have a very nice profile of myself published in this month's Buzz (PEI's arts and entertainment newspaper) as reminder of how far I have come as a writer (and how far I still have to go) since making this island my home.