[Winona Online Democracy]
Hey, Folks...
My suggestion is that we stop flaming each other...let us let opinions
freely flow, and refrain from personal insinuations...
Happy Holidays!
Bob Sebo
Gene Thiele wrote:
>
> [Winona Online Democracy]
>
> Gregory,
>
> 1. You seem to be very upset about the result of the election. I pray you
> will get over it soon.
>
> 2. I hope you don't teach American History at SMU, although it would
> explain why so many young people lack a true historical perspective until
> they start to investigate on their own, later in life.
>
> 3. I think most republicans realize that Bush received only 6% more of the
> vote than Bill Clinton in 1992 and will act accordingly.
>
> 4. Reverend Jackson has compared Bush's campaign tactics to the nazis.
> That illustrates his complete lack of understanding of what happened in
> Florida (more whites had votes discarded in Duvall county than did blacks),
> and he demonstrates the general insensitivity America's black leaders have
> toward the holocaust.
>
> gene thiele
> Winona, MN
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Gregory A. Gaut" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Sent: Thursday, December 14, 2000 4:13 PM
> Subject: [Winona] Plugging mouths
>
> > [Winona Online Democracy]
> >
> > I just joined Winona Online Democracy, and among the first messages I
> received
> > was one from Terry Angst which concluded with "if someone would put a plug
> in
> > Jesse Jackson's mouth, this country could start to recover from this
> ordeal
> > and get on with life." The next message came from Marcia Chafee who began
> > with "what a refreshing sentiment..." For a moment I thought I had
> wandered
> > onto the wrong list.
> >
> > These messages reflect a callous attitude towards democratic debate on
> such
> > crucial questions as whether parts of the African-American electorate in
> > Florida were effectively disenfanchised. This is a serious question that
> won't
> > go away by plugging people's mouths. (Many things have been written about
> > this, but see
> > www.salon.com/politics/feature/2000/12/04/voter_file/index.html.) These
> > messages also bear witness to why the Republican Party has minimal support
> > among African-Americans. There is no demographic group where Bush did
> worse:
> > according to the exit polls on the CNN website, 90% of African-Americans
> voted
> > for Al Gore. This is probably not because of any great love for him. More
> > likely it reflects an African-American perception that the Republican
> Party is
> > made up of people who would be happy to put plugs in the mouths of
> > African-American leaders.
> >
> > In larger sense, Republicans are in no position to be scolding African
> > Americans or any one else about "what is wrong with our country today."
> The
> > results of the election give them little to brag about. It's not just that
> > more Americans voted for Gore than Bush, or that more Florida voters may
> have
> > preferred Gore to Bush. (On this point, see for example the Miami Herald
> at
> > www.herald.com/content/archive/news/elect2000/decision/104268.htm.) In
> fact,
> > neither received a majority of the votes cast. In countries which have
> > electoral laws in some ways more democratic than our own (like Russia),
> Gore
> > and Bush would now be facing a runoff election, and if neither received a
> > majority because too many citizens exercised the option of voting for
> "none of
> > the above," they would be eliminated as candidates. That result might be
> > closer to the will of the American people this year than a victory for
> either.
> >
> > Finally, when you factor in the low voter turnout (about 50% nationally
> this
> > time), we arrive at the stunning realization that Bush received the votes
> of
> > only about 24% of the electorate (the same could have been said of Gore
> had he
> > won).
> >
> > Given all this, Republicans could be a bit more humble about their
> victory,
> > and a little less anxious to put plugs in the mouths of people they
> disagree
> > with.
> >
> > Greg Gaut
> > Associate Professor
> > Department of History
> > Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
> > 700 Terrace Heights #27
> > Winona, MN 55987
> > Telephone: 507-457-6944
> > Fax: 507-457-1633
> > http://www.smumn.edu
> >
> > ----------------
> > This message was posted to the Winona Online Democracy Project.
> > Please visit http://onlinedemocracy.winona.org to subscribe or
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> >
> >
>
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