A Fool and his Words are Soon Parted

In Favor of Capitol Punishment June 8, 2006

With all the primary elections going on around the country, there’s renewed talk about whether the Republicans will maintain their control over Congress, or if the Democrats will make inroads (or more). Regardless of your political ideology, this is an interesting question.

Let’s Get This Straight…
In some states, you can demonstrate party loyalty using a mechanism called “straight party voting.” In choosing this option, you have basically said, “I don’t really care who the individuals are, as long as they’re aligned with this party.” Both parties track this type of vote, where it’s legal, because it gives them a good grasp of the support for the party, relative to the support for individual candidates, which is potentially the case if someone happens to choose only Republican candidates, but chose not to select a “straight Republican vote.” (This is not a reference to the sexual preference of the candidates, in spite of Republican insistence that they are the “straight party.”)

My Three Stooges
When there are incumbents, I want a different option. I want a “straight throw-the-bums-out voting” option. Whoever is in the capitol at the moment, bears some responsibility for the mess, so throw my bum out too.

In times like these, putting Larry, Moe, and Curly in office might not be a step backward.