Erections
Elections are on Tuesday! And I am still undecided! Shit!
Okay here's the dealio. Israelis are turning fascister and fascister by the day and are voting for dudes like Avigdor Lieberman (he wants to kick out all the Arab-Israelis who already have Israeli citizenship). But Bibi Netanyahu (who has already proven himself to be a crappy prime minister the last time he had the job) is the guy most likely to win the election as of right now. His biggest opposition is Tzipi Livni, chick who is Minister of Foreign Affairs and is head of the Kadima party, which is full of corrupt politicians I don't like.
Now the only real reason it's a close call and Netanyahu isn't winning by a landslide is that super right wing people are so sure he's going to win that they're happily voting for Lieberman and other extremist rightist parties. Whatever coalition government Netanyahu builds is going to be aggressive, more likely to create wars and (my favorite!) humanitarian crises, and push away any possibilities of peace, or of getting Gilad Schalit back (soldier who was kidnapped by Hamas in 2006). The only sure-fire way to stop a right wing government is if Tzipi Livni wins.
So that's where my dilemma comes in. Originally I was going to vote for the Green Movement - Meimad, who pretty much embody every single thing I ever wanted for the state of Israel in terms of social, economic, and religious issues, and that's hard to find in a party. The only problem is that these guys more likely than not aren't going to pass the election threshold. So what do I do? Small parties have surprised everyone in the past, passing the election threshold when nobody expected it, and election polls in Israel do have a tendency to be very bad. But is it a risk I'm willing to take? What's more important, voting for the party I believe in, or voting for the prime minister I want? (Interestingly enough, for a short while the system in Israel did allow for two votes, one for prime minister and one for the party of your choice, but alas, things change.) Should I vote for an entirely different leftist liberal party that will pass the election threshold but won't help Tzipi win? (My least favorite choice.)
Your thoughts, please.
Okay here's the dealio. Israelis are turning fascister and fascister by the day and are voting for dudes like Avigdor Lieberman (he wants to kick out all the Arab-Israelis who already have Israeli citizenship). But Bibi Netanyahu (who has already proven himself to be a crappy prime minister the last time he had the job) is the guy most likely to win the election as of right now. His biggest opposition is Tzipi Livni, chick who is Minister of Foreign Affairs and is head of the Kadima party, which is full of corrupt politicians I don't like.
Now the only real reason it's a close call and Netanyahu isn't winning by a landslide is that super right wing people are so sure he's going to win that they're happily voting for Lieberman and other extremist rightist parties. Whatever coalition government Netanyahu builds is going to be aggressive, more likely to create wars and (my favorite!) humanitarian crises, and push away any possibilities of peace, or of getting Gilad Schalit back (soldier who was kidnapped by Hamas in 2006). The only sure-fire way to stop a right wing government is if Tzipi Livni wins.
So that's where my dilemma comes in. Originally I was going to vote for the Green Movement - Meimad, who pretty much embody every single thing I ever wanted for the state of Israel in terms of social, economic, and religious issues, and that's hard to find in a party. The only problem is that these guys more likely than not aren't going to pass the election threshold. So what do I do? Small parties have surprised everyone in the past, passing the election threshold when nobody expected it, and election polls in Israel do have a tendency to be very bad. But is it a risk I'm willing to take? What's more important, voting for the party I believe in, or voting for the prime minister I want? (Interestingly enough, for a short while the system in Israel did allow for two votes, one for prime minister and one for the party of your choice, but alas, things change.) Should I vote for an entirely different leftist liberal party that will pass the election threshold but won't help Tzipi win? (My least favorite choice.)
Your thoughts, please.