I am writing in response to Shannon Flaherty’s Forum article in Thursday’s Hatchet (Nov. 30, Bush won on two counts). Ms. Flaherty, I voted for Al Gore, and I still have hopes that he will be our next president. In fact, I am sure that many of the tens of millions of American citizens who voted for Al Gore support his challenging of the Florida election results.

When Bush supporters drone on about Al Gore’s attempt to block democracy, they ignore the fact that the legal actions in Florida are not just for Gore’s sake, but for all of us that still support him. Republicans’ scoffing at Gore’s actions marginalize the convictions of the millions of Americans. It is just one further example of the Bush supporters not heeding the voices of people with different political convictions than their own.

I will admit I am biased toward Gore’s arguments. I am biased by the fact that I am a Gore supporter. And, whether they admit it, it is no coincidence that the most vocal critics of Gore’s actions in Florida are Bush supporters. Seeing how questioning Florida’s election laws is a partisan action, let the issue be decided by an impartial body: the U.S. courts.

Ms. Flaherty, you are right, this is a drawn-out process. But if you will walk over to 1 First St., NE, and look at the pediment above the entrance to the Supreme Court, you will see a scene depicting numerous historical lawgivers. And in the two corners of the pediment, you will see a tortoise and a hare. These allegorical symbols are meant to remind us that the system of justice our country has adopted is slow but only so that we can ensure the correctness and impartiality of the result.

-John Igrec
senior