In the face of a 3.5 million lead in the popular vote for George Bush, the liberal FUD has already begun:
Rumor on the infamous internets is that the states with the most discrepancy between exit polls and results are those with diebold machines
It can't be that the exit polls were wrong. It can't be that the "conservative media" (who favored Kerry in record numbers) were wrong.
It must have been the voters. Three and a half million of 'em. All fraud.
I was a bit surprised at how good a night the Republicans has across the board. But for the last four years, the "selected not elected" crowd has been hammering the mantra that unless their guy wins, it must have been rigged. Nothing could be more damaging to our democracy than to embrace that view. Reasonable people can differ on the proper outcome of the 2000 election, but if this pattern continues, no election will be valid in the eyes of liberals unless conservatives lose.
Ultimately, democracy isn't about the ends. It's about the means. Whatever government we pick, whether left, right, or other, we get because it's an extension of the people's will. Our policies may differ, but that principle never varies. In this election, especially, liberals have been so focused on the ends - "anybody but Bush" - that they are willing now to taint the means by which we govern ourselves. Sure, there have been flaws in this election, just like any human endeavor the size and complexity of a national election. And we should work to eliminate those flaws. But to cast doubt on the whole process is irresponsible and it demeans everyone who cast a vote for someone other than John Kerry.
Posted by wasylik at November 3, 2004 10:29 AM | TrackBack