[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
Folks, I think Al Gore by rights should be ahead right now in Florida.
There is no question now that the ballot in Palm Beach County was very
poorly designed. The Presidential Candidates were listed in two columns,
with a row of "arrows" down the center between them. The arrows are
staggered between the candidates on each side.
Thus, the first arrow is for Bush on the left side. The arrow directly
below it is for Pat Buchanan on the right side. The *third* arrow is for
Al Gore, the *second* candidate on the left side. How inane.
Anyhow, Pat Buchanan pulled 3,400 votes in this very left-leaning county,
easily Pat's best showing in the State. That borders on being absurd.
I did a conservative estimate of Pat's real support in Palm Beach County,
based on him pulling slightly more than the average statewide support. By
my estimate, Pat Buchanan pulled 2,600 votes in that county that should
have gone to Gore.
Bush currently leads Gore by 1,700 votes statewide.
Suffice to say, this recount is getting very interesting. If Bush cannot
get to a 3,000 vote margin, the result should be questioned. NBC News
reports that the Gore camp has already contacted the most high profile law
firm in the State to "explore" a legal challenge. Many other
miscellaneous challenges are also abounding.
In my humble opinion, even with the evidence from West Palm Beach, a revote
would be disastrous for the country, and should be absolutely out of the
question.
The West Palm Beach vote is a mistake, but I don't know what can be done in
the best interest of democracy.
I have an idea... split the electoral votes. It's been done in other states
before. The two state votes go to whomever won the state overall, and the
remaining votes are based on the indvidual districts. That way, Florida is
not neccessarily the deciding vote, and this miscairage of the electoral
system is not as tragic as it could be. I think both candidates should do
the homerable thing and suggest that as the remedy, though I do realize that
that gives Al Gore a sharp advantage.
Michael Harney
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
