THUS SPAKE SPAK, AND GOOD FOR HIM!

Hans von Spakovski, a visiting legal scholar at the Heritage Foundation, has highlighted a significant ongoing action to prevent fraudulent voting in Arizona (http://foxnews.com/story/0,2933,452407,00.html). At issue is Arizona's Proposition 200 that requires positive identification and proof of citizenship to vote. Proposition 200 was overwhelmingly depanded by the people of Arizona but predictably opposed by the usual suspects, who tried to block it by injunction. The injunction was ultimately dissolved by the U.S. Supreme Court.

As "the Spak" points out, the honor system that traditionally underlay the American voting process has failed. It is therefore time for more positive measures. Opponents of Proposition 200 have claimed all manner of "oppression" of the allegedly disenfranchised, but the rights of ordinary citizenry must also be respected. (By the way, because it is so easy to ignore or dismiss their concerns, I refer to ordinary citizenry as "the flyoverites" even though they - i.e. we - really live throughout the United States.) The courts are dead on when they say that "...preventing voter fraud was an important governmental interest that justified the proof of citizenship requirement, particularly when the state had actual evidence of non-citizens who had actually registered and voted illegally in Arizona in past elections." And: "...Proposition 200 enhances the accuracy of Arizona's voter rolls and ensures that the rights of lawful voters are not debased by unlawfully cast ballots." (Both quotes are extracted from the above mentioned article.)

Right!