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Coleman v. Franken: Stop the Maddness
written by: SAH
Months after the election, Norm Coleman and Al Franken continue to make a mockery of the electoral system in Minnesota, previously thought to be better than that of Florida's infamous hanging chad system, but proving instead to be equally ripe for contention when it comes to the infinitely self-serving egos of politicians (and comedians).
After losing the court battle for the election this week, Coleman, who has now lost by several measures but still can't take the hint or will himself to concede so that Minnesota might be represented by someone, vows to appeal the decision. By way of justification, he had this to say:
"This isn't about me. And it shouldn't even be about Al Franken," Coleman said. "It is about the rights of Minnesotans to have votes counted so that when all is said and done whoever is elected can have the confidence of the people that they got the most legally cast votes."
If he actually believes that, and I don't for a minute believe he does, then he — and probably Franken, quite frankly — don't understand that no matter who ultimately "wins" or "loses" in this battle, not only have we Minnesotans already lost confidence in either's ability to do the job, but I, for one, am also angered at the damage they have done to our state's reputation. I'm also upset that our election system is so flawed and embarrassed by how many voters can't fill in a damn circle — basically proving that they are too inept to be allowed to vote in the first place.
So, not only do I lack confidence that either can do a good job at this point (and I was barely convinced either could to begin with), I'd now much rather see whoever was in third place be awarded the senate seat.
Unless the ultimate winner can do the most amazing job ever in the history of amazing job doing, I am likely to vote against them the next time.
I also renew my opinion that the nation needs a single, unified, voting system that they test on a large user group before it's use in an election. And after that, a rejected ballot is a rejected ballot. If you can't follow simple instructions, which in all cases comes down to essentially point-at-the-one-you-want, then you don't get a say.
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