Now, I have some very strong political views, but I'm going to do my very best to keep them out of this, and simply explain why as Christians, we should not only vote, but be very, very careful about how we decide to who to vote for.
This is going to seem like stating the obvious and then putting it up on a massive billboard, but the government are very important. They make decisions that affect our health systems, welfare, housing, the economy...in fact, there's no point in making a list. It's their job to, you know, run the country. You may feel that the decisions listed above are too easily swayed by vested interests, or that the system doesn't allow real change, but a lack of voting is not going to do any more to change that than writing a letter to congratulate everyone on what a good job they're doing.
People think that by not voting, they're standing up against the system. What they're actually doing is ensuring that it goes on exactly as it was and that the same people can run it, unchallenged, exactly how they, and not the public, want to. The percentages you ultimately hear after the votes have been counted only reflect the people who show up. For example - in this election, Labour and the Conservatives are very, very close in the polls at the moment, swapping between 33-34% each. If this were to happen in the election, it wouldn't mean about a third of the country supported each of our main parties. It means a third of the people who got off their backsides and into a polling station supported each of those parties. The people who didn't show up aren't reflected at all.
If as Christians we are supposed to make a difference, stand up for what we believe in, for our neighbours, and those in need, then we are shooting ourselves in the foot, promptly followed by one of our two faces if we don't vote. Why? Because we've missed our chance- one that only comes about once every four or five years, to be heard. To not only be the voices of ourselves, the church, our faith, but those whom we were instructed by God to stand up for. If you're not happy with any of the main parties - vote for a minority one. Or at the very least spoil your ballet paper, at least the number of spoilt ballet papers is read out (although this should be an absolute last resort as it still won't count).
If the voice of the church isn't heard in the polls, the simple fact is, the politicians won't care. Young people are often the target of cuts because much fewer of them vote. The older population very rarely feel the cuts in the same way because they turn up and have their say. If as Christians we avoid the polling station, it's the same as staying silent about all the things our current government have done, whether we agree or not. We're basically saying 'you can do what you want, because I won't stop you if I don't like it, and I won't support you if I do like it.'
Take the Lib Dem tuition fee pledge last year. The student vote was a huge factor in the rise of their party. Yes - they went back on that promise, but that caused outrage, people took to the streets during and after the parliamentary vote. This time round? Tuition fees are back on the agenda. The parties that feel they still have a chance with students are promising to cut or scrap the fees. Whether things change this time around depends very much on whether this generation of students take to the polling stations in similar or larger numbers. As Christians, let's not wait for a party leader to put us on the agenda - let's review all the policies and the politicians, then vote the way we think is right. That way we're making the first move, not waiting around for someone to take up our cause.
Then there's the next issue - not only do we have the responsibility to vote, we should do so responsibly. What policies would Jesus agree with? Which politicians would He anoint? We should be wary about anyone who out of the blue (or yellow, or purple or red...you get the picture), declares their Christian faith and values. Almost all of them seem to at this point. Especially if a hustings is held at a church. On that note, go to a hustings. As they're local and often held away from the spotlight, they can be very insightful.
Whilst thinking very carefully about the party we're voting for, who's in that party, and the specific MP we're voting for, we should approach the media coverage with extreme caution. Seriously, it should come with a warning, like cigarettes do, it's that dangerous. Are you honestly going to vote for someone because they're the most 'media friendly'?
In Matthew's gospel, Jesus says 'Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves'. Although Jesus is talking about Christian teachings, I think the phrase 'ravenous wolves' is a great way to sum up the Great British press. The fact is, that almost every paper in this country has a political agenda, and it is to their advantage to push it as strongly as possible. Many of them are very closely linked to our country's politicians themselves, others choose to take advantage of the huge amount of power they hold over them. Scaremongering, hyperbole, and eye-catching, yet ultimately irrelevant facts (and pictures) all sell papers. As such, they're all tactics used on a daily basis by the majority of our press.
Now, not every journalist is evil, and not every news report is wrong, but when reading a headline - especially a political one, you should always ask yourself these questions:
- What party does this paper support?
- Who runs this newspaper, and how does this headline benefit them?
- What is this newspaper's track record?
- What facts in this article can be verified?
- What is the other perspective on this?
- Why are they breaking this story today?
In the past few years we've had hacking scandals, hypocrisy from some of our papers regarding tax affairs, countless accusations of downright lies, unnecessary personal attacks (Gorden Brown's children have nothing to do with his ability to run a country, neither does Ed Miliband's ability to eat a bacon sandwich, or how David Cameron chooses to eat a hot dog), a whole enquiry into the behaviour of our press and a battle with consistent sexism in the majority of our papers. The list could go on. My point is - let's not necessarily take them at their word, huh?
We then have television news, which, because operating under much stricter rules than our press, is better but not perfect. Various broadcasters have been accused of bias towards the left or right at some stage, but very importantly, television headlines are often derived from newspaper headlines - so again, listen out for the name of that newspaper, and refer yourself back to the questions above. ITV may very well spend half an hour creating a very fair debate on who eats their food more elegantly, but it's the press who put that piece on nonsense on the agenda. A good example is the Telegraph's recent publication of a letter from a hundred business leaders in support of the Conservatives. Whatever your political views, you have to admit, it's very impressive that they managed to get all our major broadcasters talking about a headline that bottles down to 'rich people support the Conservatives'.
Every party has at some stage indulged in political point scoring, finger pointing and spin. Sadly it's become how you survive in this political landscape - owning up to unpopular policies or ideas before an election, even if you really believe in them, means you'll be sunk by the media and your opponents. Complicated policies, or policies that reflect the complexities of a situation don't fare much better, because the reasoning behind it can't be reduced to a headline or shouted into a crowd of rowdy MPs in parliament. So we have to do our own research. Look into the track records of those who want to run our country. Work out who's values and priorities are genuinely in line with yours. Then get out there and have your say.
7th May. Write it on your forehead if you have to.
