http://www.timesofindia.com/090101/09edit4.htm

-- Anonymous, January 09, 2001

Answers

That IS a good read.

Someone ought to post the whole thing here; I've gotta run to work.

-- Anonymous, January 09, 2001

Sorry, but I'm java and html illiterate, so I hope this cut and paste job comes out okay.....

Elections in America No Cause for India to be Smug

By DIPANKAR GUPTA

THE long post-election wrangling in the US prompted many commentators in India to occupy a high moral ground. There was even the half- facetious suggestion that we should lend our Chief Election Commissioner to America for a while to bring its election laws up to speed. There was a distinct sense of joy in some quarters, both in India and elsewhere, that the most powerful country in the world was looking silly in its own backyard. The word is schadenfreude when people take extraordinary pleasure in somebody else's misfortune; and schadenfreude it was that most of us revelled in at America's discomfiture.

Now let us put things in perspective. The election of the American president was for the most powerful person in the world. This was no ordinary election. Further the result of this election was poised on a razor's edge. And yet there was no violence. Not a single incidence of murder and mayhem was reported amidst all the tension, the legal battles, the night-long vigils, and the street parades. This also in spite of the fact that Jesse Jackson took out a march in Florida when tempers were rising and patience running out.

This is where we in India can learn lessons from the post-election political imbroglio in the US. Before we rush to be judgmental, it is worth casting a quick glance at what happens during our elections. Even the most local of elections at the panchayat level is fraught with violent confrontations between opponents. Well after the results are officially declared the war rages on. Then there is the well- known Laloo Prasad syndrome which says whenever in doubt rig the results, and rig blatantly.

More than anybody else, the Americans now realise that a few things are wrong with their constitution. In the years to come there will probably be a slew of suggestions on constitutional reforms. It must be remembered that the US is very cautious about constitutional amendments unlike some other countries we know. Americans mull over constitutional issues for the longest time trying to reconcile the vision of their constitutional forebearers with the exigencies of the day. Still, it is hard to imagine that the lessons of this election will be passed over easily without some very hard-nosed debates in America's political firmament.

It is almost certain that America's electoral college system will draw a lot of attention in the years to come. Its antiquated and unwieldy characteristics were in full display. Then there are American courts whose judges are openly partisan. This cannot be such a good thing no matter which way one looks at it. More importantly, America cannot afford to take another chance like this. It may not be so lucky next time. So, all right, America is not perfect, but what is new about that? Yet there is something new. What this election has shown is America's demonstrated ability to ride out the hard times by drawing deep into its institutional foundations.

There is a lesson in all this for democratic practice in India. We, in this country, are generally careless about institutional durability and opt instead for quick fix solutions. This is because we generally want guaranteed results. If the election laws, such as they are, do not favour a certain party there is nothing wrong in subverting them for the larger glory of this or that cause. The cause takes precedence over process. Flouting proper procedure is, therefore, not cast in a reprehensible light because the cause looms largest of all among political activists. In one case the cause could be Hindu nationalism, and in another the assertion of certain castes, and in the third the consolidation of linguistic identity. As there is no shortage of causes there is consequently no dearth of excuses for breaking the law and subverting institutions.

It is not as if Gore and Bush did not have causes. There were major differences in their respective policies on health, unemployment, military deployment overseas, capital punishment and abortion. Each of these is a genuine 24 carat cause. And, yes, the supporters of Gore and Bush were deeply committed to what they thought was right and appropriate for America to adopt. Even so they let institutional procedures take their course. When the Florida election commissioner declared Bush the winner, Gore supporters did not bay for her blood but merely took the matter to the Florida court and pressed their best lawyers into service.

When at last the supreme court delivered its fractured judgment the two warring sides quickly made up and kissed their respective wives. There was a sense of relief that the battle was over. There was no clear moral winner, but on legal grounds the day belonged to George W Bush. Now the decision of the supreme court could be wrong. But this cannot be an excuse to undermine the judicial institutions of the country. Even before the judgment was announced there was a clear sense of apprehension among Gore supporters that the verdict would not go their way. So they tried to stall the passage of the case to the federal court hoping that the Florida court's dispensation would help them to pull off a last minute victory. In this case, however, they were not saved by the bell: in fact, it was the bell that let them down.

No one won by a knock-out and yet it was clear the moment the supreme court's decision was known that the game was up. Gore's supporters were surely disappointed with the verdict, but they quietly went home determined to return another day. Perhaps in due course they would push for constitutional reforms. In the meanwhile Gore delivered his best speech ever conceding defeat leading many in his ranks to wonder why all this panache had evaporated during the election duels. There is, however, another way of explaining Gore's extraordinary defeat accepting speech. He was probably proud of his contribution to the dignity and stability of America's institutions.

This then is the lesson that the recent American election has to teach us in India. We could begin by rubbing off some of our smugness at America's plight and learn instead what it means for a democracy to have strong institutions. So what if the best man does not always win?

-- Anonymous, January 09, 2001

But don't lose sight of the fact that this was *one man's writing*.

So was "Alice in Wonderland".

-- Anonymous, January 10, 2001

theres a chicken little in every crowd!!

-- Anonymous, January 16, 2001