Tactical victory

I'm kind of fascinated by the strategy of politics--by the way that Hillary seems to be ostentatiously trying not to be seen campaigning in the states she is going to lose, because the campaign would rather have the media reporting that she's conceded a given state, than hand Obama another "surprise" victory.

But deep down there's something wrong with all this. One can debate whether many things are permissible, or even vital, to democracy, even down to massive campaign contributions and backroom deals with politicians. But I think we can all agree that elections should not depend on your skill at manipulating the media, or garnering the support of the local activists with the best logistical skills at organizing things like election-day carpools.