Get your democratic hat on.

So the UK is voting now! Go vote, British people, use your power, cherish your democracy, weeeee!

I've been doing a lot of reading of manifestos over the past few days - Labour, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats...

I've nervously giggled my way through the BNP's main policies (they don't really have any...or at least they don't seem very well thought out unless they involve hating on black people or women) - you know the way you laugh a bit but on the inside you are very, VERY frightened? Their stuff always sounds to me like it's been written by an irrational 8-year-old doing a "How would you run the country?" primary school project.

I'm also interested to see the newly launched TUSC (Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition). I'm very pleased to see a left coalition which will work to decrease the split in the left vote, giving it more chance against the right where the vote is only essentially split between 3 parties. Their main policies seem slightly on the vague side though, although of course as a coalition and not a party each candidate is acting for their own individual party I suppose. They seem opposed to the EU, a viewpoint which I strongly disagree with, as well as pledging to immediately withdraw troops from Afghanistan, which I don't think is the most sensible solution - what's started must be finished (all the 'big three' aim to support the continuing presence of British troops in Afghanistan, the Lib Dems suggesting that they would try to bring them home as soon as reasonable).

What has struck me the most is the essential similarity between key Conservative and Labour policies. But I suppose that, although there may well still be a bunch of old, rich toffs in the Tories, and a bunch of old staunch socialists in the Labour Party, the people who now have the power are essentially in the centre - white, middle class, educated people with similar ideas.

The Liberal Democrats' policies most closely represent my views, particularly on a couple of points that are particularly important to me.

Firstly, whilst the Conservatives and Labour faff on trying to get more and more people into university, leading to a degree simply being a standard, expected qualification that no longer guarantees you anything in life, the Lib Dems are the only party that will scrap the '50% in uni' aim.

Secondly, both the Tories and Labour want an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This is a non-promise. No short-term promise allows them to ignore it. The Liberal Democrats also have the same 2050 target, but also pledge to reduce emissions by 40% by 2020. That's soon, people! That's immediate action! And that's what we need.

If you want 10 reasons why not to vote Labour, look here - it may be a bit of an attack, but it's all backed up by evidence.

If you want reasons not to vote Tory, I can give you a few :-P

Philippa Stroud and her 'gay cures'; bizarre tax breaks for couples who have a marriage certificate and have one member who doesn't want to work (do I really need to point out how discriminatory this is against families who don't fit some old-fashioned, stuffy stereotype of how they should live their lives?); the fact in itself that they seem to see marriage as some quick fix to society's problems (I could rant on about root causes of poverty and social disintegration for hours if anyone would like....); their plans to repeal the Human Rights Act, effectively removing easy access to the European Court of Human Rights and the Convention; David Cameron's face.... (he likes Radiohead!, AND he sometimes leaves his SOCKS on the FLOOR! He's so TRENDY!)

The impression I get from the Liberal Democrats' policies is one of fairness. Fairness and rationality. Obviously I realise that certain Tory and Labour policies appeal more to other sectors of society than the one i inhabit, but I don't believe I'm so mentally odd that my reaction is not that of the majority. I worry sometimes that so many votes come from ill-informed voters, making a decision based on age-old prejudices that the Tories are going to make us all go fox hunting and give all our money to rich people and that Labour are going to make us give all our money to poor people and join a waiting list for a telephone. That cannot be democracy.

I'm going to bed now. Go vote, dear compatriots, and in an informed and intelligent manner.

I'll leave you with a link. If you want a wonderful, eloquent, balanced article that is basically nice about all the main parties and doesn't try to tell you who to vote for, please visit Stephen Fry.