Tunnustus ja rutinaa
A confession
Kun vaalit on nyt saatettu turvalliseen lopputulokseen, uskallan tunnustaa: myöhästyin vaaliuurnilta ensimmäisellä kierroksella. Turhaa kaikki sisäinen tutkiskelu ja tuskailu. Ääni jäi saamatta... Heidiltä, ehkä, tai....
Viimeisenä ulkomaan äänestyspäivänä olimme muutenkin menossa Canberraan. Nousimme siis kukonlaulun aikaan että ehtisimme viimeistellä pakkaukset kahden viikon keikkaa varten, kastella kasvimaat, hakea postit, kiikuttaa avaimet tarvitseville jne. Ja vielä ehtiä lähetystöön ennen kello yhtä. Parin varaslähdön jälkeen pääsimme vihdoin tien päälle, auttamattomasti myöhässä vaaleja ajatellen.
Oma vika, mutta vähän tekee mieli rutista ja ihmetellä, miksi pitkien välimatkojen maassa äänestyspaikat eivät ainoana viikonvaihteen äänestyspäivänä ole auki pitempään kuin yhteen. Meiltä on uurnille sekä Canberraan että Sydneyhin sentään 'vain' kahden tunnin ajomatka, mutta pitempimatkalaisiakin on.
Toisella kierroksella olin Canberrassa jo valmiiksi.
Viimeksi jätin äänestämättä eurovaaleissa, kun kauhea vatsavirus iski eikä autoajelua voinut ajatellakaan.
Now that Finland has safely elected a decent and reliable president, I dare to reveal that I didn't make it to the Embassy during the first round of the election.
We had in fact woken up horribly early, in order to get everything ready for the 2-week work gig in Canberra and to get there in time for me to cast a vote. That Saturday happened to be the last day for expatriate Finns to vote.
There were far too many things to take care of in the morning (packing, emptying the fridge, watering the garden, getting the mail, taking the keys to right people), and when we finally hit the road after a couple of false starts, we were already late. No way of making it to Canberra by 1 pm.
Our fault, obviously, but with hindsight it would actually be really helpful if the voting places stayed open for a bit longer during the only weekend voting day. It is just two hours from us to both Sydney and Canberra, but there must be people who live much further away. Plus the roads were awfully busy because of some motoring festival taking place in the capital that weekend.
During the second round I was in Canberra already.
Comments - Kommentit
DATE: 6:10 PM
Congratulations to the Finnish people. Successful democracy does not appear to thrive south of the Equator, unfortunately. Nor much above it either, I think.Maybe there is a kind of Jules Verne-esque link between Finland and New Zealand?Nice to hear a good news story.
Posted by: Denis Wilson | February 23, 2006 06:17 PM
DATE: 10:00 PM
Well Denis, 48% or so of the voters are disappointed of course!
Posted by: ah | February 23, 2006 06:17 PM
DATE: 11:49 PM
"Tale est vita" - or as Ned Kelly said: Such is life!
Posted by: Denis Wilson | February 23, 2006 06:17 PM
DATE: 5:09 PM
Did you hear that man from the NSW league of businesses or somesuch the other day, complaining that companies are bearing the burden of the back-to-school allowance, the smaller-classes policy, water rates reductions for pensioners and other issues of social welfare? He said that the poor need to suffer for the sake of the economy.Hooray for Finland! And also for a variety of Latin American countries who are seriously annoying the USA by stubbornly and consistently voting in left-wing governments with vibrant social justice policies, frequently headed by women.I am very, very glad that Australia doesn't have six-year parliamentary terms.
Posted by: real names are a dangerous habit | February 23, 2006 06:17 PM
DATE: 6:41 PM
No, I missed those pearls of wisdom. What a wise man. Water rates reductions for pensioners must be such a burden.
Posted by: ah | February 23, 2006 06:17 PM