If It's An Election Year, Then It MUST Be Time For More Terror Alerts

Gee, where have we heard THIS before?

Is it any surprise we're hearing all this talk now of big, bad terror attacks planned soon - right now for Europe (Spain, etc.), but I'm sure we'll see this extended to us - when we have a presidential election come November? After all, they need to build up the case for supported "all war, all the time" guaranteed us by whatever GOP candidate rides into the Oval Office on the numbers from rigged electronic voting machines.

Perhaps you can spend your "huge" tax rebate check buying bullets for the Pentagon(again).

"Everything's PERFECT With New Hampshire Primary Vote Recount" - Unless You Bother to Read The Numbers

The stench wafting across the border is riper than Cabot Creamery's special blue cheese. Cough.

Bradblog is all over some of the irregularities already found with New Hampshire Democratic Primary votes recount (Republican recount to come after the Dems); I visited Brad AFTER I saw this happy horseshit on WMUR (a New Hampshire TV station's Web site). From WMUR (for MURky fact-gathering, perhaps?):

The continuing Democratic primary recount in New Hampshire has not found any voting problems.

As of yesterday, even TINY counties were noting that optical electronic scanners had reported HUNDREDS of ballots were blank (thus not counted) when they were indeed marked for a candidate.

Something really doesn't meet the stink test here. And Diebold may have changed its (bleeping) name, but it sure hasn't changed its rigged machinery.

Was New Hampshire's Primary Vote Count ACCURATE? We Need To Know: Here's Why

Last week, I noted that Ohio Congressman - and still Democratic presidential hopeful - Dennis Kucinich (along with a Republican few know) demanded a recount in New Hampshire to carefully recount the votes cast there last Tuesday. But what's gone under the radar is the WHY: that in the Democratic primary alone, whether Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama won, on the surface, depends on how the votes were counted. Specifically, the hand-counted votes seemed to go to Obama; the electronic machine counted ones seemed to favor Hillary.

I very much applaud Kucinich for making the demand; we NEED to know if there is a problem and, if there is, whether it's willful or a deliberate cheat. While our (already, if not always so fairly or appropriately) elected leaders have already kissed away true voting reform until 2012 at the same time that those in the know indicate that, even if verified voting reform were enacted TODAY, we can't even be sure the 2012 vote will be who we actually elected.

As you might imagine, there is HUGE doubt as to this November's validity of vote. And if you aren't paying attention to this, you may deserve what YOU get, but I don't think the rest of us do.

Don't Let Another Presidential Election Be Stolen

As much as I try to pay attention to what all the 2008 presidential candidates are saying (and yes, even the truly ridiculous ones like Mike Huckabee and Rudy Giuliani), I find I can't just assume that the best (Democrat) candidate will win Election 2008 in less than 11 months. And my fear isn't just vague and unfounded, not when I've watched the last two presidential elections, 2000 in Florida taken from Al Gore and 2004 in Ohio stolen from John Kerry. So have you, whether you accept this truth (as has been confirmed by many sources now) or not.

Nor did my fear lessen when even Democratic lawmakers agreed a few months ago to put back any real voting reform until 2012 - a DOZEN years past the first documented stolen vote.

It doesn't matter WHO the Democrats put up for president if the Republicans have a way to steal and otherwise invalidate winning vote counts. Nor can we wait until Election Day to not just voice our concern but to demand better.

Colorado: Electronic Voting Too Easily "Stolen"

On the heels of yet more evidence from Ohio that the 2004 presidential election was stolen (on the heels of the Bushies already having stolen the vote in Florida in 2000), Colorado's secretary of state has helped in the process of de-certifying electronic voting as being too easily corrupted. More at BradBlog.

Good for Colorado!

Think About Next Thanksgiving

When we approach Thanksgiving 2008, we _should_ already know who won the 2008 presidential race (but it's hard to exclude the possibility the Bushies will pull either a 2000 vote cheat/a 2001 "Rudy tells NY he must stay mayor after 9-11"/a Musharraf end-run around democratic vote this last month).

I suspect certain things will be true by then and while I'll tender some here, please keep in mind that what I predict does NOT mean what I necessarily want to have happen AND that I'd like to see what your predictions are for this time next year.

Mine:

* I don't think it's a given that the Democratic candidate WILL win the 2008 presidential race as much as some would like to believe it is; in fact, because we've allowed "fair election" policies to languish rather than get enacted, we've made it more likely there will be incredible shenanigans pulled in 2008

* IF a Dem wins, it will be Hillary - a choice that many Dems and Republicans will not embrace; if it's Hillary, we have ourselves to blame

* If a GOPeeuponus wins, it will be Rudy Giuliani, and that will be a disaster for the world as well as just us

* Before the 2008 race, we will be in a fight with Iran - whether it's full blown war which I expect it to be or not, it's still wrong

* A fight with Iran will make the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq seem like child's play; it will further bankrupt us financially and militarily and will ensure that those who want to hurt us have more free rein to do so because our resources will be committed in Iran

* Iran's Ahmadinejad was RIGHT about one thing this week: the American dollar is worth almost nothing; the longer the current GOP policies prevail, the worse our dollar will get and more and more and more Americans will suffer

* ALL of the bad inherent here CAN be changed if WE get involved and give as much passion and energy to changing events as we do to carping about what is wrong; NOTE this: it's critical - we can affect a change but only if we DO something more than complain and blog and slog

What say you?

Votes That Don't Count

If you think that just hoping the 2008 presidential election will bring about fair and accurate voting results - and the novelty that the person the actual majority of voters cast ballots for actually will become president, something we did not do in 2000 and 2004 which handed us the fascist regime of Bush & Cheney - you've been supplementing your diet with Konservative Koolaid. Stand up and reverse this foolish and felonious delay for verified voting reform!

And while you're at it, take a gander at this sickening development:

A federal court ruling in June that forces voters to register by party could return Mississippi to the days of racially polarized politics, as many white Democrats warn that thousands of white voters will now opt definitively for the Republican Party.

Republican-leaning voters in Mississippi have long been able to cross party lines in primaries, voting for centrist Democrats in state and local races while staying loyal to Republican candidates in national races. But political experts here say that by limiting these voters — almost all of whom are white — to Republican primaries, the ruling will push centrist Democratic candidates to the other party, simply in order to survive.

Republicans Find New Ways To Suppress The 2008 Presidential Vote

Color me pissy (is that a chartreuse or a golden ginger ale sort of tint?):

Well, having successful stolen the last two presidential elections, Karl Rove and the GOP have found a new way to keep America from voting: the "polling tax" of the first digital millenium, guaranteed to make it nearly impossible for some to vote. For example, forget your ID and you don't get in. BradBlog has the story of the voter suppression tuck-in to the immigration reform act to either kill immigration reform OR greater voter participation.

But there's a bigger issue here. Many people - including some very thoughtful and learned ones I've talked with - find that the use of a photo ID makes it potentially much easier for operatives in a polling place to determine how you (that's little ole you) cast your votes. Then, if your candidate doesn't get in, the opposing party that did could use that vote against you.

Neighbors: Join Journalist Greg Palast and Ben Cohen On Friday

I encourage everyone who can get to this to attend. And for those too far, please think of pulling together your own program. We NEED a fair and accurate count in November 2008 or we're going to get more of the terrible same! Hopefully, I'll see some of you there Friday night.

We know how much you love Ben Cohen (of Ben & Jerry's),
our founder and creative visionary. Well, Ben and Greg Palast, a
hero of the verified voter movement, will be together in Montpelier,
VT this Friday to talk about voting integrity and the work we have
left to do to secure our elections. And you are invited.

When: Friday, May 4th at 7:00pm
Where: Unitarian Church of Montpelier, 130 Main Street (at School
Street) (map)

Greg was a pioneer journalist who exposed the dirty secrets of
electronic voting, and Ben was the creative spark behind
TrueMajority's famous "Computer Ate My Vote" campaign -- which helped
eliminate paperless voting in states across the country. See them together at
Friday's event which is hosted by Vermont voting activist and WGDR's Jim Hogue.