Tomorrow is a big day for Denmark - the general elections will be held at last, after months of speculation. Will "we" get a new ruling political party? A new prime minister?
I am holding Danish permanent residency, but not Danish citizenship, therefore, I am not allowed to vote during national elections. The only time I can vote is during the muncipality elections, and I did that for the 1st time in my life last year... . Have never voted for anything in Singapore either since voting age there is 21, and I had moved out before that. Singaporeans living overseas are not allowed to vote during Singapore general elections....so all I can do is try to influence people who can vote ;o).
Oh well, not that I will anyway. Every body has their own opinions and own preferences. The current prime minister (Anders Fogh Rasmussen) belongs to a right-wing party called "Venstre", which confusingly translates as "Left" in English (don't ask me how that happened). His party would appeal most to high-end business people who are concerned about taxes and economy, etc (his party boasts of accomplishing the lowest unemployment rate in Denmark since 1974). They've been tightening up the immigration laws in Denmark too, and work closely with the Danish People's Party (whose leader, Pia Kjærsgaard is like the equivalent of Pauline Hanson in Australia in regards to being "anti-foreigners").
The other candidate for the prime minister post is Helle Thorning-Schmidt, who is representing a more left-wing party. Social welfare is high on their agenda list (which would therefore probably mean higher taxes than the already high taxes). If she wins, she'll be Denmark's 1st female prime minister... .
Anyway...we'll know the results around midnight tomorrow. Martin has already made up his mind on which party he'll be voting for. I don't actually know who I'll vote for if I could vote. I mean, they all have strong and weak points... . I guess I'll be leaning more towards the current government since I'm not a huge fan of a social welfare society... . Yes, we should help those in need as much as possible, but then you also have those who abuse the system because it's easier to sit back and enjoy the "handouts". People who are able to but are not motivated to contribute to society because society is contributing to them instead.
Even for those who are really in need, the help should just be "immediate and short-term", because in the long run, it'll be better to "teach them how to fish" rather than simply "giving them the fish".
I won't go too deep into politics here... . What ever happens after tomorrow's election, I'll just have to live with it and adjust to. Either that, or I can choose to move elsewhere... . Tomorrow, the Danes will have their say. May the best party win.
