Everybody Has an Opinion

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Now that the debacle of the 2000 Presidential election has passed through the annals of United States politics, Daniel Lazare has decided to open the wound of this three ring circus and analyze this example of dysfunctional democracy. In an excerpt from his book, "The Velvet Coup"(Voices, 102), Lazare argues that the Constitution of the United States is an obsolete document that is in dire need of a reality series makeover.

From my understanding, Lazare blames the Supreme Court, the Electoral College, and the Republican Party for that awful display of confusion occurring Election Day in November of 2000. He states, ."..Poland and the Czech Republic can accurately tabulate the results for a dozen or more parties at a time, why did the American system have such inordinate trouble tabulating them for just two."(Voices, 104). Seeing that Poland and the Czech Republic's political system is far more inferior to that of the US, he is poking fun at the system that the Framers laid out in the Constitution. Lazare even goes as far as making the Constitution in desperate need of reform by stating; ."..that any device created by fallible beings is itself fallible and hence prone to breakdown and decay." Could he be suggesting that our beloved Constitution is now like a broken down Ford? That it has seen it's most triumphant days blown by like a summer breeze? That's my guess.

Lazare would like to see the Constitution taken to the incinerator, burned and reformulated to reflect modern times. This to me is too drastic, and if the effort was there, it could be solved by using the power of amending the Constitution. The Framers may not have seen the trouble of changing times, and societal evolution to make perfect every aspect of the Constitution. The Framers put forth tools to solve any ambiguous conflicts with the power to amend this document. It is the fault of modern day politicians that the Constitution is prehistoric. The politicians have the power and the know how to change the Constitution to modern day standards. If any body should be blamed, it should be the politicians. Politics and bipartisan bickering makes our political process a joke to outsiders. Politicians get along as well as an older and younger brother. Pride and egos undo the essence of the Framer's philosophy.

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