[SuziQ]

... do you want to write my paper?

No thanks, honey; been there, done that, and got the degree 28 yrs. ago! You've got the same ideas, though, so get writing!

[carton253]

Done! Now, I feel better. The professor brings up Iraq to prove that 100% participation is not democracy but coercion. Yet, because Americans aren't coerced to the polls, somehow we fail the democracry litmus test.

Here's the basis of my paper. If low tournout at the polls is not due to govermental interference, or voters not being able to access the polls, but rather due to citizens choosing not to vote, then the election process is fair and democratic. Those who choose not to go to the polls can vote if they want to. They have chosen not to. This distinction must be made. What citizens choose to do or not do defines the citizenry and not the system. The system is sound, fair, and democratic.

Does that make sense?