American Idol took its lead from political leaders concerned about voter fraud. The producers of the show were mortified to find out illegal immigrants swung the vote in past elections. Did Kelly win from illegal alien Texas voter support? Did Carrie Underwood's country songs of misery resonate with Oklahoma illegals hiding in the shadows, trying to get by?
Wanting to keep the "American" brand pure, the show is moving to picture identification cards for Idol voters. They will still allow voting by phone and text messaging but a new layer of security will ensure only U.S. citizens vote. A tamper proof National Idol ID card will house the citizen's unique identification number. This number must be entered and validated before the vote can be cast. Whether this impacts the total number of votes remains to be seen. To date many more people vote for their favorite singer than their elected officials.
Meanwhile political figures seem intent on driving down voter participation via the picture ID requirement which can cost anywhere from $13 to $290 depending on the documentation. How is that Uncle Sam can take my taxes via a unique signature feature but I can't vote online? I can fulfill my obligations via the web, but not exercise my rights. Does that seem odd to you? Welcome to the strange world of leaders designing systems to perpetuate their term in office.
P.S. American Idol is not considering adding a picture ID requirement. This juxtaposition is intended only for thought provoking purposes.
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