It's time to vote again.

WARNING: This is going to get preachy.  So if you want to be closed-minded and/or don't like being preached at, look away now.

For those who are unaware, the mighty state of Queensland, Australia is having a State Election on the 31st of January.  Today when I got home, I was reminded of this fact when I discovered two leaflets in my mailbox - one from the LNP (Liberal National Party) and one from Labor.

Firstly, I want to critisise both leaflets. Neither of them had a phone number on them (more on this later), and only the Labor one had a website I could go to. In fact, the LNP one was a simple "Don't vote for Labor" whereas Labor was at least nice eough to provide some minor detail on what their policies were about.  I don't want to be told what to do, I want to be told why I should give you the time of day in the first place.

Now, back to my first point about the phone numbers.  I have a rule: If you want to leave stuff in my mailbox telling me to vote for you, then you'd better be ready for me to call you and ask questions.  Yes, most of the answers I want can be found on the website, but I want to know that you have the time to talk to the people you're serving and listen to their concerns.  I had a lovely chat to a man from the Labor party, who was sympathetic to my concerns about mental health services (I have to travel to Caboolture if I want to see a psychologist, which I desperately need), public transport (especially in regional areas) and coal mining (YICK).  However when I finally got a hold of the LNP, I was told they'd call me tomorrow.

Now, this is where I get preachy.  I do this EVERY election, State or Federal.  I want to be absolutely certain that I am using the power of my vote the best I can, and they way to do that is to be informed.  Policies change, people and personnel change, new problems need new ideas and I want to make sure that I get the biggest bang for my buck.  A lot of people I know don't do this.  They're either a) apathetic and won't take the vote seriously or b) have stuck with a party for years and refuse to even consider anything else.  Nearly all of the above however LOVE to complain no matter what government we get in.  I get it, they're politicians and we know we're screwed either way, but I want the parties to know that I at least am keeping tabs on them. 

More people need to research their votes and make sure it counts.  Talk to your local Members office, call them up, make them tell you why you should vote for them, make sure they align with your values and what you believe is the best way to run this country.  You don't need to be a political know-it-all, you just need to put the pressure on and use the power of your vote.

I know voting is a pain, and I know they're all liars and cheats, but the reason they are liars and cheats is because the people have allowed them to get away with it.  If you call up a party and you don't get answers you like, then keep ringing around until you find someone who gives you what you want.  Don't vote for for the LNP or Labor just because they're the two big parties - make them earn it.  We have the power to hold these people to account, let's do it and restore some pride to our great State (hard to do when we have the plastic parade down on the Gold Coast, but we try.  Stupid cold toast scums).

And if you now have a headache from my sermon, read some Chuckles and Giggles (please)!