Post-Adolescent Apathy

Whooee! Well, friends an' foes, I ain't been boogin' much during the election campaign on accounta I been helpin' out with tryin' to harvest up some Green votes here in Haldimand-Norfolk. I been doin' a lotta office work an' helpin' hand out propaganda. I even wrote an' printed up some o' that political panderin' stuff.

I spent some time this weekend handin' out pamphlets at the Norfolk County Fair over in Simcoe. Over the course of a few days, I reckon I spoke to about 4000 folks and handed out about 1800 pieces of Green Party stuff.

Since the Green Party's often listed as a favourite among the young folks, I approached a lotta 18-25's walkin' by the Green Party booth. I know the statistics also say the 18-25's are the least likely to get out an' mark their X one way or another.

My carnival barker pitch to flag down the passersby was to ask 'em if they were gonna be votin'. Some folks said they'd already voted. Some said they was gonna and they'd be glad to look at our GPC dead tree material. Some played deaf. Some said they'd made up their minds an' didn't want any dang literature. Some said they was already votin' Green so we could save our dang literature.

With the young folks, some was keen on Green. A few I asked was only 17. But, dang-it-all, I betcha well over half of the young folks said they wasn't gonna vote. I didn't get all preachy with 'em. Mostly, I just muttered under my breath that they was a buncha ignorant whelps; dumbasses who didn't pay the least attention to polyticks. Quite a few of the non-votin' 20-somethings were pushing strollers and/or had young kids in tow.

I ain't sure who I oughta blame fer the sorryass state of youth voter turnout. I reckon there's plenty of blame to go around. Judging by the stroller pushing non-voters, the parents are partly to blame. Then, there's the schools. Schools is always a good whipping boy since we expect them to turn out perfect specimens every time. Then there's the TV telling us that the only politicians worth mentioning are the crooks and perverts. Internet, video games, sports culture, discrimination by old farts, ballot-spoiling cynics... there's no end to the blameworthy.

I did have a few real bright moments at the fair, though. I had a young feller name o' Frank (17 and too young to vote) spend a lotta time askin' a lotta questions on stuff like Afghanistan and Caledonia. I found out he'd been over to the Lib's and Con's booths askin' them, too. He wasn't doin' a school project. Just keen. Young fellers an' gals like young Frank is who's gonna run the show in 25 years or so. I just hope there's enough of 'em.

JimBobby

Green Grandma on YouTube

Whooee! Well friends an' foes, I been spendin' a lotta energy the last coupla few years tryin' to kick the stuffin' out of a bigass misconception folks seem to have about the Green Party and more specifically, about Green supporters. I'm talkin' about the dumbass notion that Greenies is a buncha treehuggin' teenagers or idealistic university students or hippie commune dwellers.

Sure, there's a few o' them types in the party but the average Green Party member is a far cry from the hackneyed stereotype. I'm active in my local GPC riding association. Mostly, it's a group of 50+ grandparents, retired professionals, small business owners and just plain everyday folks like live up and down every street in Canada. I been to a few bigger Green Party events in places like Trawna (centre of the universe) and Guelph and Waterloo. Lookin' around them rooms, I seen that the average age was about 45 or 50. Mostly, they dress better than me but that don't take much.

Anyways, I just thought I'd like to share a YouTube ad from the Green Party candidate here in Haldimand-Norfolk. I met ol' Stephana Johnston a few times last year when she was workin' fer Fair Vote Canada agitatin' fer proportional representation in the Ontario referendum. Now, she's our Green Party nominee and I'm happy as Larry. Like I said, I'm a 59 year old grampaw. I figger Stephana's old enough to be my mum. She's smart as a whip an' she's got more energy than the Nanticoke coal station.

Here's her new YouTube ad.



I see she's got a dang good history and record posted up on her website. I reckon the ol' gal's gonna give Diane Finley a run fer her money. Diane's got more money but she sure as hell ain't been spendin' much time here in Norfolk and Haldimand counties. Most folks I talk to say Diane's all washed up. She's been a no-show on everything anybuddy cares about and she only shows her face when she's got some money to dole out buyin' votes.

The Grits got a pretty good guy in Eric Hoskins. Trouble with Eric is he ain't been around much neither. He's what some folks call an Ottawa insider and Dion's hand-picked candidate. From what I hear-tell, he left the area after high school and never came back until Dion wanted him to run fer the House o' Comments. He shouldn't have any trouble gettin' more votes than the absentee MP Diane Finley, though.

I'm votin' Green and I feel dang good about votin' fer ol' Stephana.

JimBobby