From: Wayne E Baisley (wbaisley@enspherics.com)
Date: Sun Nov 12 2000 - 21:54:09 PST
> J Jackson was on the air last night reporting on destroyed
> ballots and miscounts tieing it directly to the Gore camp.
The Reverend Jackson is nothing if not entertaining. His concern for
the electoral well-being of the elderly Jewish is quite moving, no?
Why, it seems like only yesterday he was referring to NYC as hymietown.
I'm sure he still feels bad about that.
> I think if this goes on for another week the entire
> elections system will be up on trial:)-.
As one aspect of the whole question, there have been plenty of
Democratic calls for the elimination of the Electoral College this
go-round, just as there have been Republican calls in the past. I for
one think the EC should stay, though I'd be unwilling to go to war over
it. Look at it this way:
Say that Charlton Heston ran for Prez against Tedward Kennedy. Let's
say that in 49 states, Teddy had a lead averaging 20K+ votes, putting
him up by a million, but in California Mr. NRA snagged a one-and-a-half
million-vote surplus. Charlton got the popular vote, but only one state
wanted him. With the EC, Teddy wins in a landslide, which seems right
(if nauseating). Far-fetched, but this year's reality is stranger than
political fiction.
Seriously, though, the EC works in the same way that city council wards
and districts do, and even the Senate, for that matter. In the 70s, the
Feds poked their schnozzes into local Houston politics and forced the
city to divide the city into districts, instead of electing 5 at-large
councilmen, because it was almost impossible for blacks and hispanics to
overcome the redneck vote. With the EC system, every state gets a
minimum of 3 votes (whether they deserve it or not :-), one for each
member of Congress. Vermont and the Dakotas actually mattered this
year. Even DC.
The one thing I find strange about the EC is that its results are
certified by the President of the Senate, which is the Veep. If it
weren't such a perfunctory assignment, it would be an enormous conflict
of interest this year. Let's hope that duty never gets politicized.
Cheers,
Wayne
Stay out the bushes!
"Yes, but" heats South.
The U.S. by southeast
The U.S. hosts beauty.
But that's, "Oh, yes, sue!"
USA, both testes, yuh?
Status by the House
Hush test? You beast!
Testy "hush" to abuse.
He/She says, "Butt out!"
Shut to subset? Yeah.
But you stash these.
But so hasty the use.
Buy thou the assets?
South buys the seat.
States: Yes, but uh-oh.
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