Once again, it is time for the quadrennial ceremony that is meant to legitimize the existence of Parliament politicians. It is election time – a time to hold them accountable for the disasters they have brought upon the Norwegian people and the world at large. Unfortunately, it seems that politicians are increasingly more concerned with power and positions as phenomena, rather than as a means to serve those they represent. This, in turn, contributes to the phenomenon that fewer and fewer people find it worthwhile to cast their vote. It is also not so easy to sift through all the election noise and figure out what one can realistically expect from the various parties. It is mostly about choosing the lesser of the available evils.

Sometimes we just want change. Something different from what has been. It doesn't always go so well. Just look at the USA. They clearly wanted something different. The rest of us hold our breath and hope the world survives. Although we probably don’t have much to be proud of ourselves either. A Bergen sand-sprinkler who is busy spreading sand where her stray dogs have been and peed, or done something worse.

I think this government has been a disaster. Not when it comes to the economy or living conditions. Such things are now mostly independent of the politicians. When things go well, it is usually in spite of – and not because of the politicians. And when things do not go well, those same politicians have very little to contribute. It is always the ordinary people who have to fork out and pay the bill anyway. No, the disaster is that they have made it so that one feels ashamed to have to say that one is Norwegian. They talk about values, but discard all ideals that exist, both Norwegian and international.

We do not have democracy in Norway. There is hardly any country in the world that can boast of having true democracy. The city-states in ancient Greece had it. True democracy can hardly be scaled up to work for an entire country. Instead, we have something called representative democracy.

We choose those who will be our representatives. Let us choose worthy representatives, representatives we can identify with. The very least is that they must have a minimum of common decency.

But most importantly: Make a choice!

Godt valg