Vote 'whatever'

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So. Australia, the time has finally come. It is time to talk about gay marriage.

Over 760 million people now live in countries where same-sex marriage is not entirely frowned upon. Now, a number of Australian citizens think it is time for Australia to be one of those countries. Some people, however, do not agree. And that is okay.

Yes. Hello, I am a woman who voted 'yes' on the piece of paper I recently received that offered me two options to the question: 'should the law be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry?', the latter being 'no'. And some people may too have voted 'yes', most not part of the gay community, most a part of it. Some people may have voted 'no', again, most not a part of the gay community, yet some a part of it.

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Why am I stating the obvious? Well, the obvious does not seem that obvious to some people.

Recently, too, I have noticed that there has been a clash, a battle, a war-cry from the side that screams "HOW DARE YOU VOTE NO?" and a return, from the side that asks "HOW CAN YOU VOTE YES?"

Naturally, said battle would occur, given that some people are for, and some against. That is the way each argument goes. that is the way each debate is structured. That is the way in which you can label people, based on who you personally think are tolerable, and non-tolerable. And that, let me finish with a cliche, is the way the cookie crumbles.

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But the reason as to why I am writing this today is because people are forgetting about the crumbs in this cookie. People are forgetting to see the obvious, the thing as clear as day, and that is that each person, person A who voted 'yes', and person B who voted 'no', is right.

Both persons are right in that they have expressed their own opinions. Both persons are right in that they have exercised their sense of autonomy, the one thing granted to us in our society, and chosen for themselves, based on their circumstances and personal beliefs, what they think is the right decision for Australia as a whole.

This, however, does not sit well with some persons. Some persons wish for one box to be ticked: YES. How, then, can these people be angry at those who too wish for one box to be ticked: NO, when really, they are expressing the same multitude of hate towards the other?

There has been one Latin phrase which has been ringing strong through my entirety the minute I had chanced upon it. No, it is not 'carpe diem'. That has unfortunately been overly used. The phrase I have in mind, however, unfortunately has not. COGITO ERGO SUM - or, in English, for all you hip people to understand, 'I think, therefore I am'.

I have René Descartes to thank. We all have him to thank, and I hope that you will too, shortly after reading this piece. It is important to consider this Latin phrase as it is, I think, the most humane phrase there exists for every thinking, rational human being sharing this planet with other beings. It posits that because I am alive and I am well in thought, I am alive. I exist because so too does my mind, and my mind exists because I do. I think, therefore I exist. I think, therefore I am. Cogito ergo sum.

I digress from English momentarily to tell you that Descartes' little phrase is pertinent to all of us. To all those who have been, all those who are, and all those who will be. You think, therefore you are. Take a second to take it in. Breathe it in. Read these words and accept them: you matter, because you think, and therefore you are important because of your thoughts. You have autonomy over what you believe in.

Okay. Now that we have got that out of the way, let me reel you back in to why I am writing this today: I am rather upset at the fact that some people are opposed to those with opposing views to theirs. 

Listen, person opposed to opposing views. Just because you hold a particular belief, it does not mean that it is the only belief that should exist. Take me, for example. I am a human who falls in love with other humans, based on their intellectual merit and the ways in which they too view me as a human being, as opposed to the status quo notion of dubbing falling in love as a pursuit of completion and opposite-gender-based-attraction. And yes, I voted 'YES'. I wish to marry who I please, in the event that I ever do wish to be married in the future. I also wish to divorce who I please, in the event that after I am married, I wish to exit that marriage - thankfully, the sanctity of marriage is not as valued and I can partake in said divorce without waiting for a vote.

I digress, again. But yes, I voted 'YES'. I wish to live in an ideal society where my views are valued. And hey, I am a rational, thinking human being who understands that people who voted 'NO' also wish to live in an ideal society where their views are also valued. To them, that is a utopia. To me, a dystopia. But our views will differ, because our opinions differ. The only difference is, that between me and the person opposed to those whose views oppose theirs, is that I accept that there are different views, and they do not.

I am aware, that inherently, there are two choices in this matter, and though some people are not in agreement with others, that every opinion matters because different people have different belief systems, and different modes of thought based on circumstances and experiences.

What I am saying is, that I voted 'YES', and I think it is okay if you did not.

What I am saying is, be humble. Kendrick Lamar says this too:

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People parading that whole, "I AM GAY, FEEL SORRY FOR ME, I AM GAY AND THEREFORE NOT FEELING GAY BECAUSE I CANNOT MARRY WHO I AM GAY WITH" - please, be seated. I mean, if you are sincerely upset about this, I am with you, but if you are sincerely upset and opposing those who oppose your view, then I am sorry, but I do not ascribe to your way of approaching matters that are sensitive to most.

You voted 'yes'? Great. Cool. Your choice. You voted 'no'? Great. Cool. Your choice.

That is how the response to either vote should be.

It is OKAY to vote whatever you wish, so long as you are abiding by your personal belief system. So long as you are aware that you, and others, are autonomous beings. Your government is offering you a CHOICE. That is something that most governments do not offer.

Cough. North Korea. Cough.

Our government has been so kind as to offer us a voting sheet that allows two choices, that caters for two modes of thought, two kinds of lifestyles. Our government accepts that there will exist two sides in an argument. Our government, surprisingly, is acting more rational than most people involved in this voting catastrophe. It is even more rational than the lady who fired an employee who voted 'no'.

My favorite theorist, Martin Heidegger, was a nazi. I won't capitalise that word, it is already enough that I had to mention it, and I already regret doing this, but I need to make my point. My supervisor advised me not to include his art theory in my thesis, but I decided to regardless. My thesis made a significant splash in academia for me. I was able to speak about it in a literary conference, I was offered a PhD position at Monash University, and I have received admittance to the Golden Key Honours society. 

I do not ascribe to nazism. I am against it, by choice, but though Heidegger was not, I still appreciate his mode of thought, and some of his theories. Do my opinions match his? No. Do I think that his existence mattered? Yes. He thought, therefore he was. I think, therefore I indeed am. 

My grandfather told me an interesting story, once. There was a priest on his way home from mass. In a nearby field, he heard someone screaming for help. He approached this figure, and noticed this figure was satan.

"Why would I want to help you?" asked the priest.

"Well," satan responded. "Think about it this way: if you don't, people won't have a reason to come to church anymore."

The priest promptly helped satan to his feet, took him home, and nursed him back to health.

Good and evil will always exist. There will always be what you think is good, and what you think is evil, as well as what someone else thinks is good, and what someone else thinks is evil; what matters is the path YOU take, and the person you craft yourself out to be, as well as the path you leave vacant for someone else to walk along. Be humble, and accept that there will always be two. Be humble, and accept that your opinion is not always right. Be humble, and be yourself, while letting others be themselves too.

Whoever you are, whatever your journey, whatever your circumstance, know that I respect you. I respect your struggle, your belief, your opinion, and I will respect you equally whether you vote 'yes' or 'no'. I just hope that you return the same sentiment.

So vote whatever. Choose your own path, and let others choose theirs. Your opinion is not the only opinion that counts, otherwise we would have all received voting papers with the choice 'YES' alone on it, which defeats the purpose of a vote, really.