Recount

I watched a very interesting DVD this week, picked it up at Blockbuster since I don't have HBO. The show was titled "Recount" and it was about the controversy surrounding the 2008 Presidential Election between Al Gore and George W. Bush. Regardless of what political views you may have had then or what your politics are now, you should find this show is absolutely fascinating. It is a mostly unbiased view (many might disagree) of the history of that incident although it is presented as a drama rather than a documentary.



A detour on the highway of Democracy, you decide?

The program is both a historical record and interesting character study of some of the key players involved (not Bush or Gore, but the actual people who 'fought the battle'). If you haven't seen it go rent it, this provides an excellent reminder of the things can go wrong in an election and keep in mind that none of the core issues regarding election standards have been corrected yet - so this could all happen again. I almost felt a little sorry for how Katherine Harris was portrayed in the show, it was easier to poke fun her at I suppose - I think her story is more complex and has more depth than the show presented (after the 2000 election she went on to become a Congress-woman for Florida's 13th district but then lost the seat in the 2006 election as she was reaching for the US Senate - without the Bush's support), but then again maybe not.

The controversy in 2008 was never really about hanging chads (or as they point out in the show, the plural of 'Chad' is supposed to be 'Chad') or punch-card dimples, it was and is about how voting standards and technology interact and are interpreted in times of crisis. I'd have to rate 'Recount' as one of the top 3 best shows about politics ever produced.


Copyright 2008, Raving Reviews™