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'One-vote' myths exposed but your vote still important + In 1645, one vote gave Oliver Cromwell control of England. + In 1649, one vote caused Charles I of England to be executed. + In 1776, one vote gave America the English language instead of German. + In 1845, one vote brought Texas into the Union. + In 1875, one vote changed France from a monarchy to a republic. + In 1923, one vote gave Adolf Hitler leadership of the Nazi Party. + In 1941, one vote saved Selective Service - just weeks before Pearl Harbor was attacked. We've all seen the above list and this newspaper and others have used it repeatedly to promote voter turnout on election days. Well-known folks ranging from Jessie Jackson to Ann Landers have published them. Well, none of them are true, according to the Web site Snopes.com. We don't know how such fallacies get started and become the truth when they are nothing of the sort. Be that as it may, we would still tell you that your vote on Nov. 7 is important. You have a right to cast a ballot but you also have a duty as an American citizen and an heir to the greatest democracies the world has ever seen. We can tell you that votes do make a difference. Right here in Clarke County, a commissioners race was decided by less than 10 votes not long ago. Over in Monroe County our late friend Carlisle McClure was a county commissioner jokingly known as "Landslide McClure" because of his one-vote win once. He wore the label proudly. The current president, George W. Bush, won Florida's 25 electoral votes and hence the 2000 presidential election by just 537 votes out of some five million that were cast. The list at the top of this piece may be a fable but there are too many authenticated examples that prove that every vote does count.
Do your duty and vote this coming Tuesday.
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