May 25 - Exercising the European Franchise

After a great quantity of anxiety, I cast my first vote for the Linke Partei in the European elections around the early afternoon yesterday.

Since I had expected to vote Green until the last moment, it was a bit of a shock. In the end, what determined my vote was the enduring disgust with the treatment of Spain and Greece under the austerity regime, and the refusal of any major party to address it with conviction and to my satisfaction. Secondly, a fleeting mention in an article that in the Europe-wide debate for the next President of the European Commission, only the Linke-allied candidate stated that he was not in favour of the sanctions-happy state of diplomacy with Russia.

It felt like a wild decision, and at the hall I was so anxious if I had cast the right vote that it felt like my hand would begin to tremble as I marked the right circle.

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Still, the mistake I did make was not to attend to the last days of the Tempelhof Airfield discussion. Being taken off guard by the two initiatives on the ballot, I thought that the two of them were intending to maintain a building-free Tempelhof, and that the 100% Tempelhof Field initiative was merely a more purist alternative. So I marked 'Yes' on both. In fact the second initiative was put forth by the Berlin Senate, enabling the building of residences along the perimeter of the airfield, and if it achieved a quorum then it would invalidate the other initiative. (I think.) The thing is that the 100% Tempelhof Field initiative fortunately won, and the senate's initiative failed to attract enough votes to pass the quorum. But as an individual voter with a duty to be informed, of course, I feel like a numpty.

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Warning: Partisan commentary ahead, painted in very broad strokes.

In general, the European election results are dispiriting, but these were largely anticipated and if ~62% of eligible citizens did not use their franchise, then we have scanty reason to whimper at the embarrassment we are turning into in the eyes of the world. (Maybe the Nobel Peace Prize is a fateful burden, like the albatross.) As for France, I'm still so mad at Prime Minister Manuel Valls's remarks about the Roma that I have little pity for the Socialists regarding their defeat by the Front National and any fear that the French political elite in general might appear racist by extension.

Regarding Ukip and AfD, I think they're perfect 'I'm not a racist, I swear,' franchises for those with enough self-awareness to fear that their antediluvian views are not fitting for this age.

At least the relevance of the European Union might be kept minimal, as it has been believed to be for years, and we can assuage the fears of Ukipers and LePeners that the EU is some kind of hyperintelligent hypermachine for the efficient enslavement of the rural fringe.