By now you’ve either read the Hunger Games books, or seen the first of the movies from that book trilogy.  So the set up is familiar, a region’s champion is chosen by blind lottery.  Those chosen are then subjected to a battle to the death for national acclaim and a life of leisure and comfort.  Something like that could never happen in America right?

How about we substitute the words “political office” for “battle to the death”?   Then that is possible, not only possible but it actually occurs!

The small town of Dorset, Minnesota (population 22) picks their mayor by lot.  They drop everyone’s name into a hat.  If you live in Dorset, you could be chosen as mayor.

In the Hunger Games story, the youngest you can be to be chosen as a combatant is 13.  That’s the whole set up for the story isn’t it.  (In case you’ve been living in a cave I won’t go any further and spoil the story for you.)  In Dorset there is no such age limit.  Which explains how Bobbie Tufts became the towns mayor.  Mayor Bobbie is 4.  Yes 4!

It seems to me that politics’s is a pretty nasty business.  To me it boarders on child abuse that a 4 year old could be forced into that world.  Unless that child lives in Dorset.  Dorset really isn’t an actual town. It doesn’t even have it’s own zip code.  Dorset is actually run by the towns business owners.  It is a “corporatocracy”.  So the Mayor doesn’t really have anything to do.  Ever.

So really little Bobbie is learning a valuable life lesson.

Politicians that do the least, are the best!