Patricia Mercado's plan to go door to door to spread the word about the evil doings of the PSD's electoral adversaries is a perfect example of why the prohibition on negative campaign propaganda is both futile and silly. The IFE has said that Mercado's plan is unfortunate, and may be illegal, although it seems like it should be allowed to my inexpert eyes. More importantly, the episode demonstrates how negative campaigning is like water building up against a leaky dam: it will find a way to sneak through, one way or another. If it's not sanctioned by the electoral authorities, then negative propaganda will be disseminated via Youtube videos and anonymous email chains. As we all (sort of) learned from Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park, negative opinions will find a way. Even more importantly, a fundamental part of all political propaganda is that the other guy does it wrong, so you should vote for me. Restricting that essential message because it's ugly is like outlawing blocked shots in basketball.
(Gratuitous metaphors in this post: three. It's just a huge day for me. This is the perfect way to bounce back from the disappointment I alluded to in the previous post.)
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