The Waiting Game

Cold, rain, snow and darkness filled the days in the land of the giant puppets.

The deadline for the proportional representation ballots was today. Would politics in BC remain the same as usual, or would BC lead the country in adopting a more representative voting system and a fuller democracy? The 'Yes' and 'No' sides were in a dead heat.

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The puppets sat in the living room wrapping gifts and writing cards, silently absorbed in their tasks.

GOOD TIME (standing up): Anyone want some mulled wine?

PER (sitting up, putting down the pen and stretching): I'm ready for a little break. Some mulled wine sounds lovely, thanks, Good Time.

NOWCA (tying a bow around some cedar boughs): Me too. Thanks, Good Time.

image courtesy of Pixabay

MR. PIPELINE (looking up from his cell phone): Count me in.

PER (sighing): I wonder which way the vote will go.

GOOD TIME (bringing in steaming mugs of mulled wine): The referendum on proportional representation in BC? Me too.

MR. PIPELINE: What's the big deal? It's just a voting system.

NOWCA: If it goes through, it'll be a game changer.

MR. PIPELINE: That's an exaggeration.

PER (taking a drink): No, it's not. Our Prime Minister campaigned on the promise to bring in proportional representation, but reneged. Now our province has the opportunity to show the rest of the country what they're missing.

image courtesy of Pixabay

GOOD TIME: I bet people across Canada will be so impressed when they read about it in the papers.

Good Time's remark fell into a heavy silence. Finally Per spoke.

PER: When people read about it in the papers or hear about it on the radio, IF it goes through, it's not going to be the good stuff they'll be hearing about. People with deep pockets and strong connections to government and media will make sure of that. The 'No' side that's so well funded will put their money to work to make proportional representation look bad.

NOWCA (taking a sip of wine and looking down thoughtfully): I'm afraid you're right, Per. Those forces have a way of stifling democracy, crippling environmental progress and doing all they can to maintain business as usual. You see it everywhere.

MR. PIPELINE: Luckily, not everyone has figured that out. The art of persuasion is well lubricated with money and influence.

PER: You're right, Mr. Pipeline. A whole culture has been created that distracts us, gives us misinformation and reaps big profits at the expense of everything and everyone else.

GOOD TIME: Even at the expense of the future. What are we going to do?

NOWCA: One thing at a time. I'm cautiously optimistic that proportional representation will go through here in BC. And that will lead to more political engagement, judging from other jurisdictions that vote that way, and to political decisions that are better for our environment.

MR. PIPELINE: You really think you can stand up to the power of big money? Who do pro reppers think they are anyways?

PER: Ordinary people who want a future for their kids and grandkids. People who are sick and tired of being lied to and pitted against each other. Folks who want their votes to mean something.

GOOD TIME (taking a sip of wine and tying a cedar frond onto a gift): People who want to go to the beach in the summer without choking on wildfire

image courtesy of Pixabay

smoke.

NOWCA (arranging decorations on the coffee table): People who want some sanity and care in our political process. Who want to do what makes sense in the face of climate change and growing inequality, and not just what corporate lobbyists want them to do.

MR. PIPELINE (taking a swig of wine): Well, guess what? People are busy, tired and they don't pay attention. And the few who do are outspent by the powers that be.

If you ask me you don't have a hope in hell of getting pro rep or changing the system.

PER: But you know what, Mr. Pipeline? People have access to the internet, so they can see through more and more of the lies they're told. And they're getting worried and angry about the world situation. Take a look at what Greta Thunberg of Sweden had to say at the COP24 Climate Talks. I quote from the article:

"Thunberg explained that while the world consumes an estimated 100 million barrels of oil each day, "there are no politics to change that. There are no politics to keep that oil in the ground. So we can no longer save the world by playing by the rules, because the rules have to be changed." 

"So we have not come here to beg the world leaders to care for our future," she declared. "They have ignored us in the past and they will ignore us again. We have come here to let them know that change is coming whether they like it or not. The people will rise to the challenge."

MR. PIPELINE: Ya, well that's just one person.

NOWCA (taking a sip of wine): She's 15 years old, and youth are going to ignore the moneyed and do what they need to do to have a future. Why the future isn't a concern of everyone is beyond me, but it belongs to the youth. They're smart and not willing to give up.

GOOD TIME: Hey, I thought we were talking about pro rep.

PER: I guess we got off topic. But like pro rep, so much of what's going on in the world is about money and power and the misinformation it feeds us.

NOWCA (taking another drink of mulled wine): We'll find out if we get a proportional representation system in BC on December 22nd. We've done all we can and now we just have to keep our fingers crossed.

PER (getting thread and a big bowl of popcorn): In the meantime, we may as well make the place look festive. Anyone else want to thread some popcorn?

image courtesy of Pixabay