Don't Be a "Mickey Mouse" at the Polls...

This is actually an earlier post of mine that I'm reposting, in case you haven't read it already.
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You'd think after 230 years, the system would have figured out how to handle this year's voter turnout. Because in theory, all citizens should be voting, yes? And we're only in the early stages of early voting right now...

If you're voting early, please keep this in mind: you have the right to ask for an Emergency Paper Ballot, in the event you face some of the clusterf*ck at the polls that many in the press are already up-in-arms about.

And if you vote, check your completed ballot before you "turn it in." Do not, I repeat do not, just assume that the machine or whatever got it right. I've only seen a clip of that Simpsons episode when Homer has trouble in the voting booth with that touch-screen that keeps saying he's voted for McCain when he was trying to vote for Obama. But CNN, among others, has reported stories of voters saying this has actually happened to them. If anything seems not right to you, tell a poll worker immediately. And nobody wants to hear the phrase "hanging chads" ever again... Right?

And take a cue from those poor Seniors in Florida (some of whom were begging for chairs when forced to stand on line for hours and hours) who persevered and managed to vote. If Grammy and Gramps can stick it out, so can you.

Also, you may want to leave your Campaign gear at home--T-shirts, buttons, etc. Because the state of Virginia, I just learned on CNN/MSNBC, will not let you set foot inside their polling places if you are wearing/displaying such gear. Virginia says those people can still vote, they just have to change, or turn their T-shirts inside out, or whatever, first. If Virginia can say that, then...

Also, Virginia, specifically Montgomery County, has been spreading misinformation to college students there, telling them they'll lose their scholarships if they vote locally where they go to school. Not true. In addition, attempts (allegedly) to suppress the college student vote are happening nationwide, and not just in Virginia.

As a last resort, please demand a Provisional Ballot, if you are denied at the polls for any reason. This election should be about a Margin of Victory. But it may, once again, be about the Margin of Litigation (See Florida 2000). If history repeats itself, your vote will at least be recorded on that Provisional Ballot, for the lawyers and courts to sort out afterwards.

(exhale) OK, now go vote. Please. And you can call CNN's Voter (Fraud/Suppression) Hotline should any problems or questions arise. The number is (877) GOCNN08, or (877) 462-6608. CNN has set up this hotline to "keep them honest" at the polls. And CNN reports voting irregularities as they happen, to help keep voting honest for all our sakes. So these "kinks" can hopefully be worked out by Election Day in November.

You can also raise any questions and concerns you may have to 1-(866) OUR-VOTE. And here's a link to a good site set up to help voters enter the voting booth informed: http://www.866ourvote.org/newsroom/news?id=0043

Purging Eligible Voters in Swing States

Oh... someone please talk me down. I know I made a quip about Groundhog Day earlier, but this...

Colorado is the swing state getting the most attention, currently, because things have now gotten legal there: did they or didn't they purge 30,000 eligible voters from their list? Meaning, lots of people who registered can show up at the polls only to find that their names are not on the list of voters permitted to vote. Hmm...

Here are the other swing states (yes, the all-important swing states) that may be trying to engage in some kind of dirty Voter Suppression: Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, Nevada and North Carolina.

Please read my earlier post, Don't Be a "Mickey Mouse" At the Polls. Before you head out to vote. It may not be enough to keep your vote protected, but at least it's something.

And btw, is every one of our Presidential Elections going to be like this now? It used to be that candidates just needed to earn that "Margin of Victory." Has that changed now, though, into just needing to pass the "Margin of Litigation"? (%$#@!*...)

LISTEN UP, you dirty elected officials, whoever and wherever you are: We the People own you. We hire you, and you can bet your ass we can fire you... So you better start learning how to fight fair.