Head count

    Heading into another

    American election cy-

    cle, we prepare to

    count the innocents

    who still take their

    place at the polls.

    Like rodeo riders,

    or wildlife restored

    to its habitat, we

    should think of as-

    signing them numbers

    or banding them. A

    fairer way of track-

    ing what becomes of

    their participation

    in this democracy,

    than looking at the

    people they empower.