Sober reflection not necessarily election tradition

Cynics see U.S. elections as a contest between politicians to see who can bribe the most voters with handouts and other goodies.

They are not without a certain amount of justification in their beliefs -- although some Republicans might be shocked to learn that the promise of "a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage" originated with one of their own, Herbert Hoover, in 1928.

Mitt Romney tried to swim against the tide with his "47 percent" speech, delivered to a private group of supporters but then publicized through a cell-phone video recording.

In a quote that helped cost him the election, Romney said he was writing off the "47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what" because they are dependent on the government for everything from food to housing and health care.

But maybe we shouldn't be so hard on our modern politicians.

It turns out election bribery, in the form of alcohol, is as old as the American republic.

Colonial Americans were bigger drinkers than their modern descendants, consuming about twice as much hard liquor, about five gallons a year.

The Father of our Country "drank a fair amount" of Madeira, a fortified Portuguese wine.

George Washington learned about whiskey's popularity the hard way; receiving 40 votes for the House of Burgesses in 1755 after his opponent served beer, whiskey, rum punch and wine at the polls to win 271 votes.

He turned the tables three years later, winning with 331 votes after serving alcohol at to that year's voters.

Washington built a large rye whiskey distillery after leaving the White House and by his death in 1799, it was producing nearly 11,000 gallons a year with the help of six black slaves.

The pendulum swung the other way later in our nation's history, with laws closing bars on election day, but those laws have seemed to go by the wayside as well.

It's true that we're likely to vote in our self-interest, one of the basic principles of democracy.

But let's hope the majority of Americans voting in Tuesday's election put more stock in what is good for their country's future than in a stiff drink.

That can wait until after the results are in.