Tag Archives: Vote

Morpeth and Deeds not words

Posted on by Standard Reply

When you go through Morpeth you must visit Emily Wilding Davisons grave.

I was amazed when I was told that I would be walking right past where a suffragette was buried. The only suffragette in fact to die because of the struggle for the vote. Emily was a militant activist who disrupted meetings, burned buildings and threw stones at politicians who were against women having the vote. During her nine jail terms she was force fed. She died trying to pin a suffrage banner to the kings horse at the Epsom Derby in 1913. Emily was a member of the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) that employed a range of militant tactics to get women the vote.

Morpeth itself is a beautiful town with a park containing a castle, mound, river and the most bizarrely homey public toilet you’ll ever see.

Winding from Morpeth to Ashington is a quiet tree-lined stream valley.

 

To vote or not to vote, that is the question

Posted on by Standard Reply

Many people I’ve met have conflicting views about how to vote or whether to vote at all. With the European and some council elections coming up on the 22nd of May and the general elections next year, it’s a passionate question. There is a website called Vote for Policies where you can compare the policies of parties without knowing which party is which, then select those that you agree with and at the end it tells you which party is the best fit.

Many people especially younger voters want a ‘no confidence’ vote for the entire political system. Russell Brand famously expressed what many young people are feeling when he called for people to not vote. If we do decide not to vote however, it is assumed to be apathy or consent. How could it be considered dissent? If you have decided not to vote, one option is to organise a protest outside your polling station to be ‘counted’ as dissenting voters.

Some other countries offer a ‘none of the above’ option in voting where if a significant proportion vote for this then nominations have to be reopened. In our current system however if we do decide not to vote, staying at home will definitely not have our voice heard. Those considering a non-vote are those most likely to vote for radical reform, so without them the remaining vote becomes more towards the status quo. So whether we vote our choice, or non-vote our choice I hope we will be active and vocal in showing our engagement, because anything else will be to consent to business as usual.