Many of those who have read this blog over the years are aware that I live just north of the most powerful nation on earth. Anyone unaware of the fact that, at the time of writing this, that nation is about to have what might be its most important election in two hundred and fifty years of existence needs to contact me because I wish I could be so unaware.
Some might say that the results of this election will alter the course of the country's history. I would say that is an understatement.
Over the history of the United States of America, a good indication of who has power there has been who gets to vote. An excellent summary of that indication of power is to be found in this article by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
The article shows just how recent and pervasive are the changes to who gets to vote, and more - how effective their vote has been over the years. Living where I do, the concept of gerrymandering, explained well in the article, has never been something I have been concerned about. What amazes me, and concerns me greatly as I watch from here, is how every time power shifts from one party to another so do voting rights. Because we live so near them, the results of their election will influence our people and the politics, here, as well.
In a little less than a week, one of those two parties shall take control of so much that is controversial in the world and that country. The rights of individuals are at stake. Who gets to vote is at stake, but if history has taught us anything about autocratic governments, the rights of those who are different could change radically unless the results of that vote show, without doubt, whether the lives and votes of every person in that country matter to the majority.
Yes, the vote must be overwhelming. It needs to be a resounding statement by the populace. Either that country stands for freedom, as they have claimed over and over, or it does not. If that nation doesn't stand up for freedom, resoundingly, then its place in the world will change forever, and not for the better. The lives of those who are different, no matter what that difference might be, will change with it.
