All of Canada is a stage. The national stage is set and the script well known, ad nauseam, because it was previously leaked to the media. The players are familiar and, sadly, there are no understudies. There are no ingĂ©nues who might add a little spark of life or a measure of je ne c’est quoi to the performance. The plot of this vaudeville show is not new; in fact, much to our chagrin, we have seen it play out four times now in the past seven years.
As much as we hope there will be a surprise twist or alternate ending, there will not. We will get the same ending and, comme d’habitude, the show will get panned by critics and pundits alike. What is this show? The marquee reads: 41st General Election – Canada Votes.
On Friday — Good Friday as a matter of fact — constituents will have opportunity to cast an early ballot. Advance polls will be open from noon to 8 p.m., Friday April 22 to Monday, April 25. These dress rehearsals will add a little buzz to the increasing hype over the ‘really big show,’ which has a one-day run on May 2.
Despite the buzz, the rhetoric, the banter and the fear-mongering television and radio advertisements that tell us how horrible our alternatives are, this show will not be a blockbuster. It will not even place in the top 10 at the box office. While many films and shows will thrill audiences in the pre-summer season, It Came From Canada 41 will likely see the same levels of voter apathy as earlier prequels. Worse yet, we will likely not have to wait much more than two years (or less) to see the next instalment of this disillusioned franchise.
Sadly, though, these productions, while not even B-movie quality content-wise, are not lacking in production cost. $300 million is nothing to sneeze at! The ads, airtime, posters, town hall meetings and such require a lot of tax dollars. Times are tough and we should consider that the cost of running an election has gone up since the last one. The $300 million amounts only to six decent Lotto Max jackpots anyway, so we won’t really miss spending the money on something as important as a frivolous election. Where else would the money go? Health care, education, and infrastructure are matters for provincial coffers. What this country needs are more gazebos and park benches!
Forget Kraft Hockeyville contests. I think all municipalities should vie to host G8 summits. Then we could build amphitheatres and stage something intriguing to watch like Julius Caesar, Hamlet or Macbeth — politics with some substance, if not a little action and excitement.
All kidding aside, my hope is that all citizens of voting age will take the time required to reflect upon the issues, examine the platforms, get to know their local candidates and, most importantly, cast a ballot. In this regard there can be no play-acting or pretence. Being a responsible citizen means exercising your democratic right to vote for the men and women whom you feel will best guide our nation.
I appreciate the many Canadian celebrities who are appearing on traditional and social media encouraging students to let their voice count. There are more than a million students of voting age. Getting this youthful input is key to shaping our future political landscape. Our youth are, in many ways, more open-minded to ideas and better suited to embrace change than those of us who vote like our parents or grandparents because we were born into a political party rather than truly opening ourselves to a deeper exploration of the issues. All the world is a political stage indeed and we are more than merely players, each having many parts and roles to play — voting being one of the most crucial. Too many people in this world are sans rights, sans vote, sans everything. At the advance polls or on May 2, play your part well — break a leg!
Tim Cusack usually acts his age and today wishes Ian a very happy birthday.
