Tag Archives: Mary Costello Daniel

Trick or Treat – another election

Halloween_Trick_or_TreatWe Irish know in our genetic sinews, no scholarship need be considered, that Halloween, or all Hallows’ Eve, springs from the medieval Gaelic Samhain, marking the end of harvest and the beginning of the darker half of the year.

It is little wonder then that we have most of our elections as the natural light dims and darkness grows.

In one tradition of All Hallows’ Eve, souls wander the earth until this evening for their one last chance to gain vengeance.

This election season we have the feeling our candidates are making the holy day’s danse macabre their inspiring motivator, calculating a revenge comprised of how they may get theirs — at our expense.

The right to vote that we “enjoy” is a forced choice made before the primary or caucus is held, the product of back room paper and power shuffling that pre-selected whom we may consider.

The districts themselves are drawn not rationally but by the force of numbers in the line-drawing state legislature with one clear purpose – to pre-determine each election’s outcome.

Our voting discretion is “informed” by tall yarns, name calling and distracting issues that make the blood boil.

One clamoring voice outshouts another with high cost hard copy and electronic propaganda that muddle or drown out any contrary fact or opinion.

The election “trick” is the threat of how bad it will be if you don’t choose the imperious “me.”

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Election news bites

In recent election news…

The Purcelle Gazette caught Dave LaRock bending the truth to explain his debate no show. While the LaRock campaign refused to commit to a date before the debate, afterwards, LaRock’s campaign website said “the Gazette went ahead with promoting and holding their event knowing that Dave could not be there.

The Gazette wasn’t having it.

To come out after our well-attended public event and suggest we misled readers about Mr. LaRock’s participation, is unfortunately consistent with his campaign’s behavior regarding public debates. As with the Berryville forum, in which he refused to attend at the last minute claiming it was a “set-up,” and also with the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce’s forum, in which he refused to even contribute written answers to the Chamber’s standard Q&A, Mr. LaRock has shown contempt for the basic mechanisms of the democratic process. Continue reading