Today, we vote

[janestarz]

The Dutch low house (Tweede Kamer) is elected once every four years, or as soon as a reasonable period has passed since the low house fell apart. As we in the Netherlands have a lot of different parties, no single party can get a majority in the low house like in other countries. This means that several parties have to work together in a coalition. And this also means that if the coalition falls apart, so does the government.
This happens a lot.

Ever since I got the vote at my eighteenth birthday, not a single low house has filled their period of four years. None of them made it to the end.
It's getting kind of old. I dislike politics, the media circus that surrounds it, and the ego of the people in it. They all think they have the wisdom to lead a country, and because the other guy holds a different opinion than their own, the other guy must be wrong. Cue shouting. Cue political one-liners.

Still, I'm a leftie. I believe that we should take care of the less fortunate and that by spending money as a government, people will follow and the economy should get better too. By being tight-fisted and taking money away from the people, they in turn will have to be careful where to spend their money. And yes, I do realise that we don't have a lot of money to spend at the moment, so it is a matter of "where do we get it?" but I believe there are people enough in this country who can afford to pay a little more taxes without having to skip on important stuff like dinner or welfare.

For the first time since we're together, NoKey and I will not be voting together. It was quite the fifties feel; walking hand-in-hand to cast our hard-earned votes.
After today, the circus will go back to their own town, fight over who will work with whom, what the coalition will look like (hey, I vote for all the lefties together. Geert Wilders will be insufferable as opposition, but at least he'll get the mike time he so desperately wants!)

Politics. It's so definitely not my thing. But please vote. Vote today, vote next year, vote every time you can!

Comments

[lanzaned.livejournal.com]

Right after my coffee I will. And yes left wing as well

[kenshinichinyo.livejournal.com]

Please, please, don't let the PVVD win...

[muizenstaartje.livejournal.com]

They served coffee and tea at the polling station in Bunnik.
I always vote, even for things that look stupid (Do you want candidate 1 or 2 for mayor, both are from the same political party and want the same thing?), because I don't take suffrage for granted and especially not women's suffrage. Although it was only 2 years, but there was a time when men could vote in the Netherlands and women could not. Before that only the elite, male population could vote.

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

Exactly!
I was moved by an elderly couple walking hand-in-rollator to the polling station, going to vote together.

[zegnooitnooit.livejournal.com]

Another leftie here. But I have to wait until I'm done working for today.
And hopefully this coalition lasts for four years.

[nachtvisser.livejournal.com]

As I walked the 'Helldog' towards the polling bureau I wondered what to vote. All in all the partie's want the same thing. To get the Netherlands out of the crisis. But in so many differend ways. On entering the polling bureau I came into a flow wich I recognised. Id-ing yourself, handing over the polling leaflet and entering the voting cabin. And automatically I dotted a big red circle on a left-wing partie. After I left I felt like I made the right decission (or is it the left?) After all it is important to live in a country where we all benefit instead of suffering from a intolerable reign wich divides the rich and the pour.

I sincerely hope the politicians keep up to their promisses made in the campaign but am afraid of what will become of it when the forming of the coalition has taken place. We're still in for a some lousy years i'm afraid.