Is this Fair?

So, I am all ready to vote in the U.S. election. I can't vote in Canada because I am not a citizen. Yet.

Over the weekend, I met a man who was born in the U.S. and has lived in Thunder Bay for 30+ years. He became a dual citizen in the 1990s. He travels on a Canadian passport. This is the first U.S. election he's voting in since he moved here and fortunately, our votes won't cancel each other out.

The thing is, he's also voting in the current Canadian federal election.

I'm not sure how I feel about this. I have imagined I will pursue dual citizenship, now that it's no longer "duel citizenship." (You don't have to renounce U.S. citizenship to become a Canadian.) I have to be resident for 3 years before I can start the process, and I have other paperwork I want to finish up before I take on another project, so I'm not in a huge hurry or anything.

But I still wonder--is it FAIR to vote in elections on both sides of the border, just because it's LEGAL?

I know another dual citizen (U.S/Canadian) who votes in Canada and doesn't vote in the U.S. elections. She says she doesn't have to watch the elections or the ads in the U.S. and doesn't have to deal with the fallout from elections, other than the way the entire world has to deal with the fallout from the U.S. elections.

That seems more fair to me. Vote where you live.

On the other hand, how fair is this: My vote will disappear. Technically, I will vote in Oklahoma. That means the impact of my vote will likely disappear in the Electoral College, since the state will likely go for McCain. (Don't ask me to explain the Electoral College. My father spent significant time after the 2000 and 2004 elections explaining to the League of Women Voters in his hometown the reasoning behind and impact of the Electoral College throughout American history. He loved institutions generally, but even he wasn't completely "sold" on its relevance today.)

But back to me and my vote: is THAT fair? That my vote basically "disappears" because my last U.S. home, technically, was in a state where I was one of about eight Democrats, the remaining seven or so of whom are my relatives?

In this election, it doesn't matter. I'm voting. So there. It probably won't matter in future U.S. elections, either--I'll vote.

Unless I'm a dual citizen and I decide to vote here. Because I'm not really sure about voting on both sides of the border.

On the other hand, we're talking about politics. If politics were fair...I don't really have an ending for that sentence. Well, if politics were fair, the first woman this near the White House (sorry, Geraldine Ferraro, but you didn't have a real shot) would be...um...sane. Or, like, intelligent.

Though it's definitely NOT FAIR to expect women to be MORE qualified to serve than its current--male--incumbent.

And it's also extremely NOT FAIR to allow him to serve as the new yardstick against whom we measure the fitness of future candidates. That's not fair to us--or anyone.