Don't vote if you don't want to

Continuing our very out of the ordinary run of politically themed posts (to be expected right now I suppose) I will urge you to make your own conscious, thoughtful decision about voting. EG, you do not have to vote.

This comes from a special place in my heart (read: rage) that absolutely hates people telling you you have to vote. It is not a duty. Certainly there are many and various compelling reasons to vote. I certainly am in favour of voting for people who believe in the political process or want to effect change in the world through the political process regardless of the sense of impact. (I've never been particularly compelled by the argument that your vote doesn't count for much, it does still count and therefore matter.)

Here are a couple of highlights from my thinking about this:

Most people I know live here out of happenstance. I can't accept that that qualifies one as having accepted a social contract, nor to I believe that having utilized such public goods as roads and parks counts as having accepted this same social contract. Especially considering a time when the relative youth of the person keeps them from asserting their choice (EG they are in a stroller and can't escape).

• This argument is similar to the "he died for your sins" one. 1) I didn't ask for that and 2) I don't believe in sins under that definition. And therefore, doesn't apply to me.
• I also don't like the argument that says "you should be grateful you have that, I really want that" addressed by those who aren't officially citizens. I also really want them to have that right, but that says nothing about the necessity of my choosing to join up with a system I don't believe.
• One of the supports I pull up for my argument is that it is actually very difficult to leave this country as your nationality (that is, your freedom here doesn't really include the freedom to leave). You have to get another country to accept you which tends to rely heavily on that amount of money you have or the individual value you can bring to that nation. All this amounts to the fact that if you didn't choose initially to be here they don't make it easy for you to choose to be anywhere else.
  

None of this is to say that you shouldn't vote. Only that you should never feel compelled to vote. Vote because you want to and because you think it'll make a difference and because you believe that that is how you participate in your social world.

I will, however, be voting this year. For gay marriage, high speed trains and people who appear to me to be intelligent.