Time to roll over, de Tocqueville

Amazing! More than two weeks since Election Day, and we still don't know who the next president of the United States will be. For those who've been living in a bubble, the fun began when television networks, less than an hour after crowning George W. Bush the president-elect, declared the race in Florida "too close to call." Since then, we've been subjected to the spectacle of the Republicans and Democrats filing one lawsuit after another to stop or continue the vote recount, with no end in sight. Meanwhile, talking heads have consumed enormous amounts of airtime and paper defending or bashing the Electoral College, or engaging in idle speculations over the eventual outcome. But for those living in the bubble that is middle- and upper-class America, "Decision 2000" revealed flaws in our political system far more serious than an anachronistic voting body or suspicious shenanigans involving confusing or missing ballots. In Florida -- epicenter of our current crisis -- there are disturbing allegations of intimidation or outright exclusion of African Americans, urban minorities and the poor. Residents of Miami and other cities have reported being denied the right to vote because they couldn't produce multiple forms of ID or their signatures didn't match the ones on record. Similar concerns have been raised throughout the country and suggest a pattern of covert discrimination, particularly against black voters. It's troubling enough that only half of all eligible voters consider it worth their while to vote for the president. But what I'm hearing from Florida reminds me of charges of "voter suppression" that tainted the bitterly fought New Jersey gubernatorial race in 1993, and demonstrates that the civil rights movement has yet to secure true equality at the ballot box. When those who wish to vote encounter disproportionate obstacles, the conclusion seems clear: Democracy, meant to protect the rights of the disadvantaged, is not as well off as we often believe. Perhaps even more troublesome are the international implications. The weekend after Election Day, my girlfriend showed me a political cartoon on her favorite Italian newspaper's Web site. Below the dome of Congress walk three shabby-looking men carrying suitcases. Underneath, the caption reads "America: The Arrival of Serbian Observers." Remember how our government and media demonized Yugoslavia only two months ago for its supposedly rigged presidential elections, even after international observers said they were satisfied with the voting process? This month's political soap opera has removed what little veneer of truth was left in Americans' quasi-religious belief that their democracy is the supreme political model for the rest of the world. Never mind that many outsiders have long been aware that the United States is effectively a plutocracy. What does it mean when the United Sates sees fit to punish other countries for their refusal to accept "Western-style democracy?" What does it mean, especially now that our own electoral irregularities are so painfully exposed for the entire world to see? For decades, the United Nations imposed a boycott on South Africa's infamous apartheid regime, where non-whites most certainly did not enjoy the same voting privileges as whites. When as many as one third of African-American men in some states are denied the right to vote because of their criminal records, and black voters nationwide complain of harassment and being turned away from the polls, dare we speak of a model democracy in the U.S.? Yes, there is a difference in degree between our political system -- however corrupt and delegitimized -- and countries where advocating democratic elections can land you in jail. But these latest elections have done little to reassure me that the United States is making any effort to address its enormous political shortcomings at home. Many Americans agree on the need to develop additional political parties, eliminate the corporate stranglehold on politics and guarantee all citizens the same opportunities to vote. With such broad support, maybe now it's time to take these issues seriously. On a global level, we need not share Tom Brokaw's election-night fears that "our adversaries abroad" may take advantage of a supposedly weakened America. But the truth is that the United States' ideal world leadership role -- already severely tarnished by a decade of big-stick bullying -- has now degenerated into an embarrassing farce. Beacon of democracy? A political system worthy of the world's envy? Do we really think the rest of the world isn't laughing?

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