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Mark Trahant: Election tales usually one-sided
Monday, January 31, 2005
"Every day I read new evidence about Washington's corrupt election process. There's evidence of dead voters, felons who voted, fictional registrations, people who voted twice and registered at phony addresses.
Democracy itself is at stake because "they" stole our election. So there's a pitch for a new election (one that promises somehow, magically, to not be so tainted). Every new allegation is a reminder that no one can defend the election system we have; to do so is to support fraud. This is a narrative with only one side, a clear example of an election gone awry.
But beware of one-sided stories. They are flat -- and often wrong -- and the story is richer when you consider the entire sphere. This one-sided narrative ought to be part of a much larger discussion, part of a long-running debate about who should vote."
Get the Story:
Open election better than alternative
(The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 1/30)
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