Wednesday 23 March 2011

The value of democracy

As I drove to work yesterday I was listening to Ted Robbins on Radio Lancashire talking about what makes us protest. If you get motivated to protest then there is a good chance that others will protest for exactly the opposite reasons. I often sign petitions especially online as it is so convenient. I am not sure if it is a claim to fame but my name was on the front page of the Independent a couple of years ago as I signed their online petition about electoral reform.

It isn't a protest but our last political leaflet was an AV special explaining why we should vote yes on May 5th. Opponents in the no camp tell us that reform would cost millions. That's all very interesting but they need to tell us how much our present system costs and perhaps they should tell us how much their campaign costs too if they want the electorate to have an informed choice. Most of all, they need to explain the value they put on democracy because our system is broken - that's one of the main reasons I joined the Liberal Party in 1970s Manchester. If you don't value democracy then the cheapest option is to abolish it. We would save millions in one swift move.

Change the world

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