What if you walked into a restaurant....

And there were four options to choose from on the menu.

The first option was incredibly nutritious.

• a braised rat, served on a bed of seaweed and leaf protein concentrate

The second option was an old favorite from Scotland

• Sheep stomach filled with its lungs, heart, liver, oatmeal and spices

The third option is a sweet delight

• Cotton candy, Buttercrunch and a wonderful can of Canfield Diet Chocolate fudge soda

and to round things out the acquired taste of

• Pufferfish served on a bed of natto and sea urchin eggs

Let me guess....

....You might be tempted to just walk on out and try somewhere else.

But what if a guard stopped you at the door and wouldn't let you out until you ordered and ate the entire plate. How would you feel?

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Unappealing choices

Those may seem like awful choices but think about who we get to vote for when it comes time for an election:

Now the haggis from Scotland is indeed nutritious and traditional. Nothing wrong with sheep stomach filled with offal and oatmeal ... but not everyone likes the taste and many might say that its somewhat old fashioned and outdated.

Does old fashioned and out of date sound like any political parties you have seen?

How about the rat with leaf protein concentrate?

Honestly? Environmentally friendly. Highly nutritious. It is an option that checks all the boxes on what food has to do. It just does it in a way that removes any joy, eagerness, or fun from the meal. A soul sucking pragmatic choice

How about cotton candy and buttercrunch with some soda?

It IS sweet. It does give a bit of immediate reward. Then it makes you feel sick and ultimately gives no nourishment and is totally unsustainable in the long term. A populist choice where they promise you exactly what you want but not what you actually need.

Then of course there is the pufferfish, natto, and sea urchin eggs.

Food eaten by people with very specialized tastes. Sure it may be elegant, high society and nutritious. Then again, one small mishap and it can kill you. Not to mention that sea urchin eggs make you feel liked you licked the ocean floor and the natto? It may instantly make you regret your life choices. ***The political party that has some ideas that may be awesome, or may kill everyone, and make many go...... uhhh....maybe not.

In Canada we have many political parties to choose from.

But that doesn't mean I actually like any of them. Then I look at the USA and think...and they only have two choices. It makes me think... Is this really the best we can come up with?

Don't get me wrong. I am happy that I have free elections and that there is a choice of who our leader will be. Sometimes though it feels that the menu is stacked with unpalatable choices and I'd rather just walk away and say...maybe I won't eat tonight.

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But what if I was forced to vote

I've heard that in some countries the people are forced to vote. I am glad I am free to vote....or not. If I am forced to vote then I lose my freedom. That doesn't make me very happy.

But I suppose there is a way in which I would be happy if I had to vote. It is simple really.

If there was a "none of the above" option.

What if I could vote "None of the above" and what if the "none of the above option won...All the current candidates were invalidated and we had to get a new batch of candidates".

That would be interesting. If I look at the menu and everything just screams..... NOPE. I could just say "None of the above. Bring me something I can actually sink my teeth into!".

But I actually DO take the time to vote. Sometimes I vote for a party that I support. More often than not I make a protest vote for someone I dislike who has no chance to get into power as a protest vote. My reason? If I don't vote then I can't complain about the person who gets in. If I DO vote and my candidate doesn't win then I can absolutely say that "I didn't vote for him (or her) .. and grumble a bit".

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But......

As a Christian I read my Bible and it tells me something inconvenient.

That I am to follow the leader in power

Well, in any way that doesn't contradict the moral laws of God. If I was in a country where I loathed the leader in power? The Bible says I still have to follow them and follow the rules of the country.

I may not like the choice of the people. However, in a show of unity with others in my country I will support the leader. If I don't like them? I'll absolutely vote when my time comes again.

But I really do wish there was a "none of the above" option that actually had some teeth in it.

And that's my take on the Hive Learner prompt for today. Thanks for reading and as always, I love comments if you feel like writing one. Thank you.