In simple terms our elections, electioneering and voting can be reduced to a visceral reaction and, in a word, BAH! Briefly, our election period is too long, too nasty and, often, too discriminatory about who is allowed to vote.

I am not an anglophile but I have been impressed by the parliamentary system which makes it easy to pull down the head clown or wielder of power – the head of the winning party.  That person has the power to set a new election when things are going badly and places it when it suits his party.  But the election period prescribed is mercifully short.  In a real sense this makes it difficult to run a negative campaign for you must present YOUR best face to the voters and issues count for a lot.

In the U.S. the elections are prescribed for every two, four and six years nationally and for similar periods in local contests.  And, contests they are. The electioneering begins as soon as the last election is over.  The process can be about issues that need to be attended to but soon disintegrates into iconoclasm.  If there were statues erected each time some pol was elected, the process of pulling that statue down begins immediately after he or she takes office.

What is so offensive is the negativity, the viciousness and outright lying that almost every one of voting age finds so fascinating.  If they had any power at all they would dictate to the media and those seeking election that the fight should be a fair one and NO negative process involved.

If the election process is as democratic as it should be in the home of the free and the land of the brave, then it should be a badge of honor to take part in the process.  Voters should be allowed to vote instead of being manipulated – not by the truth – but by cynical party bosses and avaricious candidates.  One sore point for me is the way we treat someone who was once afoul of the law, went through trial, sentenced and then fully served that sentence.  Why Florida and other states make transgressions a life sentence and refuse to permit those who have fully served their time into second class vote-less citizens is a question that should be asked and answered.

The whole election, electioneering and voting process desperately needs monitoring by impartial groups who cannot possibly benefit by who wins.  Unfortunately, the whole process is like a fist fight, or “sport” or war where one side wins all.  Thank goodness for checks and balances.  We should make them work.