Voting Machines @ MindSay 
This entry is from the blog Johnalism. He has an entry regarding the election results.
It's a segment I'm calling "The Democrats Were Right About..."
1. The Democrats were right about election fraud.
Democrats were right. The returns from yesterday's voting makes it perfectly clear that Republicans rig the voting machines.
In reality, I would *hope* last night would at least shut the liberals up about this absurd conspiracy theory that Diebold is sitting in a smoky back office manipulating the computers to make sure the GOP comes out on top. It's an absurd thought that certainly doesn't get backed by the results of yesterday.
My goodness, can we say "straw man"? I would not doubt that there are liberals who do sit around talking about conspiracies with voting machines, but I don't think they are the majority or the most vocal. (There are at least as many conservative sheep who sit around talking about the homosexual agenda). The outcry about voting machines was really an outcry for accountability. IF someone were to for some reason want to manipulate the vote on electronic machines, whether tied to the manufacturer or not, it would be nice to have a paper trail to reduce the chance of intentional fraud. Now the fact that Diebold's owner is so incompetent that he would actually write in a memo that he felt it was his duty to deliver Ohio for President Bush while his company was providing voting machines is more than enough to convince me that they deserve all the mistrust and conspiracy accusations they do get. But this blanket generalization of liberals is just a refuge for those who drink the kool-aid and don't want to seriously consider the real world. There are conspiracy nuts on all sides of the political spectrum. Because the right in general - and more specifically in this case Diebold's owner- are so disconnected from reality that they often act in a way that creates an impression of impropriety is no reason to go around labeling all liberals as conspiracy theorists. Their incompetence feeds these theories.
Yes, a LOT of major companies are controlled by Republicans. And most seem to care less about the good of this nation and more about their own selfish whims. I don't care about the political leanings of corporate executives. However, the combination of an owner who is more a Republican enthusiast rather than just having leanings, a contract to provide voting machines, large donations to the President's campaign, the memo mentioned earlier, having a Bush campaign coordinator supervise elections in an important battleground state, admitted glitches in machines which seemed to favor the candidate chosen by Diebold's owner, and a general nasty stubborn attitude about paper receipts, proprietary software, and security issues have not helped increase confidence in Diebold. You don't have to be a conspiracy nut to want accountability in elections. You do have to be a nut to think that corporations would have any ethical qualms about any activity that they may believe will be to their benefit. And if Diebold was owned by Democrats, there would be Republican whackos screaming all over right now.Diebold might be controlled by Republican-leaning people, but aren't a LOT of major companies? Just because they own a company do they surrender their political interests? If Diebold was owned by Democrats would that make the equipment more fair?
Show me actual proof that Diebold is rigging these machines and then maybe we can discuss whether the umpire is guilty of home cooking.
Hey, I'm with you on this. I am not going to support a theory about election rigging whether directly by Diebold, indirectly by Diebold, or by another player entirely without some good solid evidence. I'm a skeptic. But until you show me that we are doing everything reasonably possible to make these elections and machines secure, verifiable, and accountable, then don't ask me to trust any corporation or politcal power or the absolute legitimacy of any election.
If you weren't so frightened by capitalism maybe you'd realize that smart business people are out to satisfy their clientele. Not to rig elections with their equipment.
And how do you satisfy the clientele in this case? Presumably, the clientele would want functional, easy to operate, and accurate voting machines. The most important point being accuracy of course. But low and behold, there is resistence to any attempts to make the results verifiable. In some countries exit polls are used to verify election results. But for some reason, exit polls have stopped being as accurate in America in the last four years or so.
Now let's consider. If I was a corporation, and my machine was not very reliable, I would be afraid that my clientele would be upset. But, I can resist attempts to check their reliability. Hey, we have proprietary software and we just can't share it with anyone. Oh yeah, it's too difficult to come up with a computer system that also keeps a paper trail. No, sorry, you just have to trust us that they're accurate. What do you mean in the town ofGahanna in 2004 the machine registered a total of 4,258 votes for Bush and 260 votes for Kerry, despite the fact that there were only 800 registered voters in the town, of whom 638 showed up? ( Columbus Dispatch, November 5, 2004)
2. The Democrats were right about the nation's attitude toward Iraq.
This election really was a referendum on the War in Iraq. Look no farther than the race for Senate in Connecticut involving Ned Lamont and Joe Lieberman. Lamont won the Democratic primary running opposite of Lieberman who was getting blasted for his conservative stance on the War in Iraq and other policies embraced by President Bush and the Republicans.
So, Connecticut was out to show us that America was tired of the war and tired of President Bush and the Democrats tossed Lieberman to the curb. This race above all others would show just how badly this nation wanted to go in a new direction with the war.
And of course, on election night Ned Lamont repeated his primary victory by stomping Joe Lieberman and proving that all of America is unsatisfied with our progress in Iraq.
No wait, I missed something. I'm reading now that Lieberman, running as an independent, defeated Ned Lamont. He was up by a whopping 10 percent with 95 percent of the precincts reporting. That's a referendum all right.
I can't help but wonder what *else* the Democrats are right about.
Wow, that is so insightful. But let me see. The Democrats have been discussing changing our Iraq strategy including ideas to withdraw troops for months. Murtha has been one of the loudest voices calling for troop redeployment. Wait...he was re-elected. As a matter of fact, the general perception is that most Democrats favor a change in our Iraq policy. And what do you know, Democrats take the House and Senate despite what Rove called "the" math. Now it could have been inspired by the economy. But haven't Republicans been touting how great they have made the economy? Could it have been gasoline prices that sparked this blue velvet revolution? No, they are at the lowest they have been in quite a while. I guess the widespread corruption and obvious lack of scruples may have been the issue which pushed the elephant out of the room, but if I were in that party I think I would prefer to accept that Americans may have disagreed with my ridiculously naive plan to invade Iraq and completely incompetent administration. And by the way, Murtha won by 20%.
For me it's not so much about always being right. It's more important to have the courage to own up to mistakes and the resolve to correct those mistakes despite consequences or embarassment. This is the principle that too many on the right currently lack. Too many have rhetoric and slogans and straw men but no real courage, no values beyond self-interest, and no ideas but ideology.
Finally, I wanted to share something I read.
The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America took a look at 324 legislative votes in the last five years which affected American troops and veterans. Legislative proposals included veterans' benefits, healthcare, and medical research dedicated towards injured soldiers (head injuries, etc.) Based on these votes, IAVA calculated which senators and congressmen had a history of supporting the troops, and which didn't, and graded them on a curve. The original grades can be found here.
But, taking the list of Senators, and placing it in order based on grades, from highest to lowest with party affiliation noted, the list looks like this:
Origin
Till Next Time,
The Southern Fried Skeptic
What comes to mind at this point in time is that ye reap what ye sow. If you can't be bothered to do any planting, well maybe you'll get something good to consume, but it is more likely that you will end up with a field full of weeds...
I always show up at the same approximate time every election. Two years ago, my journey to the voting machine started just inside the doors of the school where I am permitted to cast my ballot. Six years ago, I started out on the sidewalk in a light drizzle. This year, I walked straight up to the desk where my name was checked upon the list of those who were registered to vote, gave my name and voted. Five entire minutes and the process was over and this included a detailed description on the operations of the new voting machines by a gentleman who seemed more than a little bored. When I arrived midway through the day, I was voter 438, which in my neck o' the woods is pathetic. Of all the people I saw coming from and going to the building (not many BTW) , I was the youngest by at least 20 years and I ain't no spring chicken...
If no one really cares enough to become part of the process, why are my tax dollars going to waste on it? Just appoint someone as Grand Poobah and be done with it...
Though I do know that during the next election cycle I will be attending at least one of the parties that I find myself invited to. It's a damn shame that of the three celebrations that requested my presence, I was not able to attend any of them due to my work schedule and I plan to rectify that on the next go away...
Unless of course, a Grand Poobah is appointed and there will be no need for such festivities...
This is the Word of the AntiCrust - an angry bitter voter...
Praise be ye who Read the Word and actually voted if you are legally permitted to do so or even if you are not legally permitted to do so, but took the time out of your busy schedule to do so...
Last year, I was elected Judge of Elections in my home district. I had been looking for a way to become more involved in my community within my time and energy restrictions, and this worked. Last Tuesday, 16 May, was our state primary and my first adventure at the polls. To make matters more exciting, we were initiating new voting machines. Election Eve, I admit, I was nervously perusing the suitcase of materiels and making sure I understood the purpose and function of each form.
6 am and I arrived before everyone else at the polls. I had to wait for someone to unlock the building we were using. No one else was there. I worked hard at controlling my urge to panic. Finally, about 6:20 the other election board members (3 other workers) showed. Whew! Much to my delight, a County Election Board member also showed up to make sure all was well. He helped me set up the new machines and get them online.
I don't know how many of you have had contact with the new machines, but they are GREAT! They couldn't be easier, really! I knew that a large number of voters would be coming from a senior care facility just up the road, so I was prepared to walk each voter through the process rather than have their vote cancelled for any reason.
It was a rainy, gloomy day, but we had a moderate to high turnout for a primary. I literally walked 218 individuals through the voting process on the new machine between 7 am and 8 pm. It was exhausting physically, but ... I finished the night feeling quite satisfied that each voter had the opportunity to vote their conscience. They each left with confidence both in their vote, but also in their ability to use the new machines correctly.
For a first time experience, it went quite smoothly. I give great credit to the other poll workers that helped and the County for being so well organized. Honestly, I never new the local gov't to be so well organized. Kudos to them! On to November!