No Need for Soul-Searching
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13250003/site/newsweek/
The campaign is being waged over abstract, partly imaginary, broad
ideological themes.
By Jorge G. Casta=F1eda
Newsweek International
June 19, 2006 issue - That Mexico has an election too close to call is
in itself news: with the exception of the previous presidential vote in
2000, this has never happened before. Perhaps this is why it seems such
a strange contest, and why the real consequences of the election are
difficult to ascertain. Nothing that has actually happened is truly
worrisome, and yet the entire process is generating a sensation of
concern, unpredictability and confusion. Last week's debate among the
five candidates is a case in point. It wasn't really a debate, the
moderator was not really a moderator and two of the candidates were not
really candidates. Each participant delivered a succession of highly
rehearsed speeches with virtually no back and forth; the master of
ceremonies simply gave the floor to one speaker after another without
asking any questions; and two of the contenders, who together claim
approximately 3 percent support in the polls, are in fact running to
legalize their parties, not to win the presidency.
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