My Fellow Canadians, don't fail us...VOTE on October 14th!

Okay so here's my pitch to all of you on why I think its PIVOTAL to vote on October 14th.

Politics can be shitty sometimes; it can be petty and pushy and seem downright disgusting to those of us who do not care for the bicker and banter of character assassinations between politicians, the broken promises, the jargon, you name it, I've heard it. But, you can't really separate yourself from politics because "the everyday is political" and the "personal is political." That is, you are affected by political outcomes one way or another, so why not exercise your right to sway politicians to have things to your advantage? Or at least more to your advantage than just being apathetic. The way I look at it, if politicians got the memo that more and more 18-24 year olds gave a damn about politics-and the only way to show that is by hitting the polls-well then issues that matter to us (like the rising cost of tuition, more internships for new grads, more spaces in law/med and other post-grad schools) are more likely to be on their radar/platforms.

There is no excuse good enough for not voting (you don't have time-make time!; you don't know where to vote-ask your student union!; you don't like any political party-abstain or vote independent!; you don't understand politics-do the research, there's so many great blogs on the net), and YES your 'one vote' does matter. No matter how troubling the game of politics can seem, there's a very good side, err a great side, if you take the time to do the research and make decisions based on what priorities you think matter most to Canadians.

I'm not ignorant. I know the way we do politics is not anywhere near where it should be, but if we want to do ourselves justice in the future, then we need to seriously consider what's at stake if we don't give a damn? I'm all for enjoying the university experience, partying on the regular is wicked stress-relief...but our political process needs some tweakin and it aint a solo mission, students need an organized process for action.

What do we want?
How can we achieve it?
How many of us vote?
How can we get more students to care about politics?
Real questions.
Real consequences.
It's about time we give a damn folks.

*Note: Notice how I didnt pitch my party. I obviously have a bias, but that is not my message...democracy (like education) is a privilege, not a right.

Think about it.

My shameless plug for Equal Voice

So i've been a member of Equal Voice, which is a "multi-partisan, non-profit organization devoted to the still-bold idea that more women must be elected to every level of government in Canada," for many years as a student. I think that changing the face of politics in Canada requires the election of more women not least of which because we live in a world made by men, for men. The way we 'do' politics is not working, we hate the players (men and women) but perhaps it is the game that needs to be re-evaluated to ensure that it matches the culture, values and demographics of our nation. This is, in part, why I am so fascinated with the political process and the people who are-genuinely-dedicated to making it better for future generations. To say that we have a long way to go would be an understatement, but alas this is a starting point.

Note: While I like the feminist approach to this organization- For this campaign in particular, "Take our girls to vote," I would open up to all children because I am firm believer in youth empowerment.

The take our Girls to Vote campaign launched by Equal Voice calls out to any voter/politician to make a pledge to take a girl (I'd say child) to the polls with you on election day to kick-start their interest in the political process, as well as to combat voter apathy!

http://www.equalvoice.ca/pledge.cfm

the woah factor

its always eerie when you hear of friends, ex-lovers or people you know in general who are around your age and getting engaged, or left that, getting married!

its a common occurrence these days, i guess its expected since i turn 23 way too soon for life... but i'm kind of lucky in that i'm the baby of the crew... so its natural that my place shall come near the end (thankfully). I guess when i think about it, that chapter of my life seems far, far away-probably b/c there's no one i could remotely picture spending the rest of my life with-yet.

its a reality check in many ways, because i imagine many of us will hit that stage of our lives and its kind of all-consuming. a friend of mine just emailed me and told me he was engaged, which prompted this post, and i thought-woah. He's many years older than me, so it shouldn't be a surprise, but it very much is...so here's to the couple, i wish you the very best in life, love and happiness, be good to her A.

thats all i got for now...

DL

"Its a paradox we call reality, so keepin it real will make you a casualty of abnormal normality." Talib Kweli.

K3G...what do you have over me?

For those of you that know me...and well, for those of you that don't...I'm not much of a crier. I tend to bottle my feelings up inside until that time of the month when every girl hates being a girl-sorry guys, haha! So, true to form-whenever I need a good cry to let it out, I watch this old Bollywood (Indian version of Hollyood) movie called Khabi Kushi Kabi Gham (a.k.a. K3G).

I just finished watching it and started musing-hence the re-name of my blog-about why I always cry, without fail, when I watch this movie? I usually cry at a bunch of points throughout the movie b/c the characters inject a ridiculous about of pathos into their roles...but I cried long and hard during two parts in particular today. Once, when Kajol's father passes away and once when two brothers part their separate ways due to a disagreement in the family.

This past summer, I had similar experiences to these characters. I lost my best friend in the whole world, my grandmother, and my sister moved away for university-albeit, minus the disagreement...I just miss her. So I relate to the emotions these characters are feeling in the movie, especially the cultural significance of losing or parting with a loved one. Indian families tend to be incredibly family-oriented, that is, family values, pride, honour kind of trumps all other priorities in your life. I guess that only holds true if you're close to your family, as in my case.

I shared the movie with friends whom I thought would particularly enjoy it...so for those of you that are interested please visit the link below (there are English subs).

That's all for now...keep it real.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR3udH_c62c&feature=related