Dear Poirot,

Yes, why didn't the media do their job
better. How did editors, senior correspondents,
and political commentators become parties to
such inept, misguided and ludicrous scams?

One can only hope that scrutiny will finally
be applied. Only I won't be holding my breath.

Poirot, "I am posting elswhere...."

Dear Old Tin of Fruit, you have had more good-byes than Dame Nellie Melba.

A flounce of sequins and you are off again forever..

But you always return. Come on now, admit that you get just a teensy-weensy little thrill out of your adoring fans like Foxy (you may count her as two at least), and others.

Trust you though to make your doting subjects jealous that you post 'elsewhere'.

Dear OTB,

Whatever it is that eating you old chap -
must be suffering terribly.

Foxy,
Democracy demands nothing more than equality at the ballot box. How that equality is achieved has nothing to do with the democratic process.
Its a bit like "Ignorance of the law is no defense"
The law is out there for you to find.
So is democracy and all the 'Constitution' or the 'Westminster' system demands is that the opportunity to express your opinion at the ballot box is not denied.
How you vote or who you vote for and how you arrive at that decision is a matter for your own political journey and if that path is tainted by lies, misreadings or stupidity is for you to decide and decipher.
You could say that there is a "Caveat Emptor" role in political assessment and the consequences of any action are squarely on the shoulders of the punter.

Dear Chris,

Actually not quite.

Democracy can thrive only when most of several basic conditions have
been met. They are advanced economic development, restraints
on government power, absence of major cleavages (in which there
is a general consensus on basic values and a widespread commitment
to the existing political order), tolerance of dissent,
access to information, and diffusion of power.

A democracy requires its citizens to make informed choices.
If citizens or their repre4sentatives are denied access to the
infomration they need to make these choices, or if they are
given false or misleading information, the democratic
process becomes a sham. Ours is a representative democracy
and it is fragile. Our voters have the right to use their
rights in a meaningful way - they can't if they're lied to.

Foxy,
Democracy only provides the opportunity for your manifesto.
You have to make the choices and decisions as an exercise of democracy.
Or,through the democratic process,force change.
Democracy id the tool and you are the mechanic.