Tuesday 26 April 2011

Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies.

I voted for the first time in my life the other day, it was a pretty exciting prospect. Exciting enough to warrant singing the suffragettes song from Mary Poppins ('Our daughters' daughters will adore us as we sing in grateful chorus: Well done, sister suffragettes!') very loudly as I put my x's in the boxes. Just to clarify, I had a postal vote so I was singing within the bounds of my own home (though admittedly in the garden).

Anyway, I have been thinking about the alternative vote/first past the post referendum a lot recently (generally a good idea when you're deciding what to vote for...) and I've realised why I think AV is positive, but also why it reveals a side of me I'm not so proud of - or at least that I find very conflictual with my staunchly upheld principles.

The thing that makes AV so attractive to me is that it entirely represents what you want. I can tell the world I would rather have the Lib Dems in power than the Tories, but also that I'd never consent to a BNP government. But I can do so without being forced to vote for a single one of those parties as my first - or more to the point only - choice because my only realistic choice is Con/Dem, when in truth I want neither of these parties in power, they are simply the (much) lesser of a number of evils.

One problem with all these jollifications is that as long as AV involves constituencies it could still be a case of tactical voting (something I am opposed to, but will willingly do as long as we have FPTP). Under AV or FPTP I'm aware that Labour have virtually no hope in hell of being elected in my constituency, and that a vote for them is potentially wasted if a majority can be formed without looking to labour voters' second preferences (which would be good in that I can say 'LABOUR' with the suffix 'but not Tory'). Instead, I think AV could solve many of the problems with our current system if a hybrid of it was created with proportional representation, in that you have preferences but only vote on a national level. There would be no need for tactical voting, but your all important second and third choices may still play a part.

But, I fear, the reason this political system is so appealing to me consists in that part of me I'm not so proud of - I'm a closet fascist. This is beautifully illustrated by a conversation I had with Andrew earlier today. We were in a lecture (yes, I'm ashamed to admit I was talking in a lecture...) and American creationists were briefly mentioned in reference to 'intelligent design' being taught in schools, to which I mimed machine gunning down said people. I know, I'm a bad person. I swiftly said, 'I'm a closet fascist' to which Andrew replied 'don't you think I know that?' I was forced to respond 'maybe I'm not so closeted'. To conclude? I'm just a fascist.

Anyway (sorry I'm being so rambly), I have a (not-so-)secret belief that we should have a right to free speech and votes, but that some people really ought not be able to vote for those that they do, or indeed be allowed to shout about them. I'm not talking about tories or other such parties who are fundamentally okay, just 'not my type'. I mean members of the BNP or the british people's party or other such extremist, prejudiced people who are willing to insight racial hatred (and in too many cases, wish to do much worse). To sum myself up: I'm a fascist when it comes to fascists. Woops.

Now you see my problem, as a socialist-fascist I have some issues. It's not always possible to promote liberty and freedom as well as enforce strict controls. The only solutions to silencing these people is either to prevent them from voting, re-educating them (too extremely fascist options, which I can't bring myself to endorse) or simply accept my internal conflict and vote 'yes' to AV.

You'll never guess what I did.

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