jjohnsto wrote:

Preferential voting, either as used in the Alternate Vote [now called IRV] or 
in the Single Transferable Vote, surely never "dulled political debate" nor 
"drained" the electoral process of ideological discourse during the 30 years 
it was used at the provincial level for choosing the legislative assemblies in 
Alberta and Manitoba, nor in Winnipeg where it was used to fill a a range of 
municipal offices where it was used for 49 years [1920-69] or in Calgary where 
was similarly used for 59 years [1916-1974] or many of the 19 other Canadian 
cities that used it for briefer periods of time. Nor, does it presently seem 
to have that effect in Australia, Ireland, or Malta, which currently use it. 
Sounds like there's more "ideological discourse" to Larry's response to Bob 
Bernstein than factual basis.