The last few weeks have been interesting in Ontario, especially in Toronto with the selection of the party who is going to represent our Province.
Wait, I said party. Is that correct? It seems that no matter where you turn, no one is happy with who the next Premier is. I have to keep reminding myself that we didn’t get to choose who is representing the party, we just got to vote for who we wanted to represent our best interests in our riding.
It was kind of easy to remember that not living in Toronto – kind of.
It’s amazing how the rumours that start to float around right before the election, and even after, and the blame that gets put on you because you may have voted one way or another. My son came home from school one day right before the election and said to me that I better not vote for a certain person because they were promising to “sue like 22,000 teachers” (he’s in grade 3 by the way). I asked him where he had heard this and sure enough, kids talking on the play ground. I had to laugh and remind him that we get for vote for people running in our riding, and not the people who we see on TV.
I think that it is a shame that my son is hearing these things at school but could also attribute to why so many young people may not vote. They watch the news and hear bad information regarding the party leaders, and not actually know what the party’s platforms is. That, and the fear of being judged because you voted for the “wrong person” could very well be why our young people feel overwhelmed. On social media day after the election, I read a post that stated: “You had one thing to do Ontario, and you failed.” Why? Why did Ontario fail if they voted who they felt was best in their RIDING. See, that word again.
While you may not agree with who is leading the party, just remember, they are not necessarily running the show. Politics – its great, isn’t it?
Christine Allan, Law Clerk