Standard-Examiner SERVING THE TOP OF UTAH SINCE 1888 Scott Trundle, Publisher Don Porter, Editorial Page Editor Ron Thornburg, Editor, News & Circulation Andy Howell, Managing Editor VIEW Local government a real roll of the dice As Top of Utah elections proved, results even in smallest races are unpredictable "I confess I enjoy democracy immensely. It is incomparably Idiotic, and hence incomparably amusing. H L Mencken After you read those words, it's as if Mencken wrote them about the last round of elections in the Top of Utah. Any system of government that is defined as being organized by the people and instituted for the benefit of the people is bound to be a little chaotic or, as the acerbic Mencken described it, idiotic. Probably the best example of this truism came in the form of two dead heats. The first tie vote happened in Marriott-Slaterville in that city's October primary. The candidates there decided to draw names from a bucket to decide the winner. A similar but certainly more dramatic version of events was the tie vote after the general election for mayor of Washington Terrace. The candidates were tied all down the line even after absentee ballots were counted and recounted. The race wasn't decided until 10 days after the election, and it was by no means a traditional form of breaking a tie. Indeed, incumbent Mayor Mark Allen and challenger Robert Garside stood sideby-side on Friday in the city offices to determine the winner by rolling the dice. Allen rolled five, and Garside rolled four. Both men smiled, having realized what an odd bit of theater the whole event had become. But if the tie-breakers in the Terrace and Marriott-Slaterville were marked by good humor, nobody at Weber State University was smiling after elections there were marred by inattentiveness. WSU student leaders had organized voter-registration drives on campus, and 650 students signed up to vote. Unfortunately, only 350 of them had their registrations turned in on time, and the remaining 300 were collected and delivered after the deadline which is 20 days prior to Election Day for registrations delivered by someone other than the voters themselves. While it's commendable for students to urge their peers to vote, they assume an enormous responsibility for making sure deadlines are met. Students who thought they were registered in time were disappointed to realize their efforts were in vain. Democracy can be amusing, but it should never be taken lightly it's too important.