Today was the provincial election day in Ontario. Being a voluntaryist, I'm not a fan of voting. I don't see it as some privilege I should be thankful for. Sure, it's better than dictatorship, but it's also a message saying, "as long as enough people agree, we can violate your rights!"
I did vote though. I waited in line to mark an X down on a piece of paper and pretend it gave me power over my own life. I know some anarchists are against this action and call it aggression, but if the aggressors are voting then I will too. I did however, vote libertarian. I did not vote to grow the government or force my opinions on people like others may have, instead I voted for a party and candidate that want government to back off.
So, anarchists call me aggressive, but what do statists say? Well, they tell me I threw away my vote. There was no chance the libertarian party would have won, so I should have voted for a party that stood a chance. More specifically, I should have voted for X party, on the basis of keeping X party out. They think they are being strategic, voting for the lesser of the evils, but all I see is fear. They vote for something they don't want, for the sake of avoiding something they also don't want. The more you question this logic, the more you see how harmful it is.
Each election it's the same thing. You vote based on who you don't want rather than who you do. If democracy wasn't bad enough as is, we have people cheering for politicians they don't like! And they let these people rule them for the next 4 years. How does that seem like a good idea? Being "pragmatic" is not really pragmatic. It is desperation. You are so close to seeing how bad this system is, how unethical the state is, but instead are too focused on what you deem "the enemy" to notice the real one.
And sure, you can say I'm no better since I'm an anarchist voting libertarian, but I do believe the libertarian party is a huge step in the right direction. Limiting the power government has over us would help people see how we don't need them to control our lives. I'm not scared about a conservative or liberal government, I see that they are both unnecessary and dangerous. We need people to get their power back. I want to restore self sufficiency and responsibility. I want a future where people can turn to the free market or their community instead of a centralized power that could not care less about them. I want everyone to keep their earnings and have choices for schools, healthcare, and even police.
I will never vote out of fear or hatred. I will stand for what I believe and encourage others to do the same.
Like it said on the card the local libertarian candidate gave me,
"A vote for what you believe in is never a wasted vote"
