Votes for Sale...

A college student in Minnesota tried to auction his vote on eBay (minimum bid $10). The eBay people put a stop to that before he had any takers.

Now a county attorney has decided to charge him under an 1893 bribery law originally used to keep corrupt political workers from coercing votes out of drunks. The prosecutor said he understood the satire behind the student's offer, but he made up his mind to file charges after watching a disabled veteran march in a 4th of July parade. In essence, I guess, you could say that the attorney wishes the student to learn what combat taught that veteran back when he probably wasn't much older than the student is now: Votes do cost, one way or another.

The young man in question understood modern politics pretty well, actually, although he did commit the sin of clumsiness. He didn't understand that while many of us consider our votes for sale, we let the people who want it make us an offer, rather than the other way around. They do that by promising benefits from government programs or other forms of largesse from the public treasury. "Vote for me, and I'll make sure you and yours get a break from the same rules everyone else has to follow."

I've over-simplified and expressed it crudely, of course, but I think the point is clear. If you'd like a longer (and funnier) explanation, I invite you to check out P.J. O'Rourke's 1992 book Parliament of Whores.

So I hope the young man learns his lesson. Selling your vote is, unfortunately, well-accepted practice in our nation. What's not acceptable is admitting to it in public.