Call It Democracy & The Electoral College by Matt Kohn

Elections are serious. Since World War Two, the human race has had the opportunity to extinguish itself. And the person making at least some of the decision regarding whether or not to use nuclear weapons is a single individual chosen by a system we have not changed since 1800.

We may never again live in a time when life or death struggles of our species are decided slowly. So it’s with that in mind that we must look critically at the Electoral College.

The purpose of the college was to elect to the Presidency a human being of at least 35 years of age who has resided in the United States for no less than 14 years and is lucky enough to have been born here. Otherwise, the sky is the limit. In theory this person is quite immune from the effects of their own decisions. A treasonous act committed by you or I could become the most patriotic decision if mandated by the President. And in the winner-takes-all system of accruing votes of all kinds, essentially, we vote for whomever wins.

While campaigning, the candidate will look at the most recent polling data, trying to understand the citizens most likely to change their votes in the candidate’s favor in unique districts across wide swaths of American experience. The gold is in the small precincts which can cause an entire state to be won, and therefore, an avalanche of Electoral votes.

This is kind of like watching sand balancing on scales to determine weight.

What I learned investigating the results of the last two Presidential elections is that pretty much every national election is prone to rigging and ultimately the betrayal of the will of the people. Even “will” as expressed through the Electoral College itself.

Watching my film, you will learn how this came to be, why it’s not going away soon, and how it has effects in every election. Watching my film, you’ll discover the historical truth that it’s not the name of the party, or a set of principles that goes back to the early 1800s, but the sense of advantage which determines how any party will react when faced with the civil rights challenges inherent in deciding by what method people vote.

This film presents the best argument from all sides. I don’t want to be bored by politicians and neither do you. What I want is to explore the mental gymnastics, tactics, and justifications that are the basics before asking yourself if the results of an election are “fair.”

I’m not going to tell you outright that the Electoral College should be abolished. I’ll help you learn about why you probably already feel that way.

--Matt Kohn, Director, Call It Democracy (Ironweed Films Volume 30: May 2008)
Visit www.ironweedfilms.com/films to learn more.