I voted on 2 November 2004, how about you?

[Simply Joel]

i got up this morning, made coffee, fed the dogs, showered, drank more coffee, discovered the youngest dog had regurgitated her entire breakfast, cleaned up the dog vomit mess, washed my hands twice, drank more coffee... drove to the polling place with my lovely bride, had a non-tobacco smoke on the way, greeted everyone at the polling place, signed my name, got my paper ballot, went to the booth, punched my chad style paper ballot, removed it from the mechanism, examined it... twice, handed it over to the young election judge, opened the door and said hello to another voter.... drove my wife back to the house and arrived at work with my brand spanking new "I voted w/waving flag image" sticker.

is this a great country!!!, or what?

I voted today, how about you?

[samtzu]

Since Oregon mails out it's ballots, I voted almost two weeks ago.... neener, neener, neener!!

But, if the money's right, I may go out and vote several more times today!

Remember, VOTE EARLY, VOTE OFTEN!!! This is how democracy works!!

[cowboyangel]

i got up this morning, made coffee, fed the dogs, showered, drank more coffee, discovered the youngest dog had regurgitated her entire breakfast, cleaned up the dog vomit mess, washed my hands twice, drank more coffee... drove to the polling place with my lovely bride, had a non-tobacco smoke on the way, greeted everyone at the polling place, signed my name, got my paper ballot, went to the booth, punched my chad style paper ballot, removed it from the mechanism, examined it... twice, handed it over to the young election judge, opened the door and said hello to another voter.... drove my wife back to the house and arrived at work with my brand spanking new "I voted w/waving flag image" sticker.

is this a great country!!!, or what?

I voted today, how about you? 8)

well that's great as long as you voted democrat
and don't even think about being called up!

[sonic]

I vote last week via absentee ballot. So I don't get my "I voted" sticker... :cry: Anyone have an extra?

[DVD Burner]

What!


I heard that voting was done on the 3rd.

[geekster]

Tomorrow is a special day for Democrats. Since turnout is expected to be so high, they have decided to split the vote over two days in some states. The Republicans and smaller parties will vote today, Democrats tomorrow.


Also, anyone that voted by absentee ballot. Your ballot will probably never be opened unless the election in your district is close enough for warrant counting absentee ballots. If there is a 10,000 vote spread and there are only 5,000 absentee ballots, they will go into the landfill unopened once the election results are certified.

If you vote for a smaller party (not Democrats or Republican) please, NEVER vote by absentee ballot if you can avoid it. Smaller parties need every vote they can get to qualify for funding and ballot placement in the following years.

[DVD Burner]

I probally should have indicated that that was a joke.

[Simply Joel]

I probally should have indicated that that was a joke.

like all your other postings?

[geekster]

As was the first paragraph of mine. The other two weren't, though.

[DVD Burner]

As was the first paragraph of mine. The other two weren't, though.

I kinda gathered but I knew I should have cleared it up for Joel.





I dont know why I get a kick outta that.
What am I gonna do once this election is over?

[Simply Joel]

What am I gonna do once this election is over?

are you soliciting for suggestions?

[KellY]

Voted in Oakland, Californ-aye-ai with a paper ballot, instead of those damn deibold things. I wouldn't have minded using a computer if there was any kind of reciept or paper trail, but I think Diebold felt that would interfere with the GOP winning...

[DVD Burner]

Vegas is supposed to be the only one this year to use a printout.


Is that really true?

[Simply Joel]

Voted in Oakland, Californ-aye-ai with a paper ballot, instead of those damn deibold things. I wouldn't have minded using a computer if there was any kind of reciept or paper trail, but I think Diebold felt that would interfere with the GOP winning...

baseless accusation with nothing (facts/cites) provided to back them up... just rumor and innuendo.

[birdbrain]

I had to vote by absentee ballot this year. Not happy about it at all. It doesn't feel real....I hope geekster is wrong about the absentee ballots ending up uncounted in some landfill.
I feel that anyone found tampering w/ our system in this way or in any other countless ways should be tried for treason. If found guilty, deport or execute them.....and I don't even believe in the death penalty...for this, though, I could make an exception

birdbrain-your avian friend, foul-weather or fair (unless you cheat on elections)

[geekster]

It is generally a matter of funding. Absentee ballots must be hand counted. That costs money and takes a long time so they don't count them unless there is a reason to. If there are fewer ballots than the vote spread of any of the contests on them, they are not counted.

It took court action to get absentee ballots counted in Fla, NM, and at least one other state, I want to say Colorado after the last presidential election.

99% of the time, absentee ballots end up unopened and in the landfill.

[geekster]

Oh, the same goes with Provisional ballots.

They count regular votes. If there is a race that is close enough for absentee ballots to make a difference, they are then counted. If the race is still close enough for provisional ballots to make a difference, the money is then spent to attempt to vet those voters and count thouse ballots. Otherwise absentee and provisional ballots are tossed out. I will get cites for that directly.

[stuart]

I voted


for those that think I am a partisan democrat be it known that I voted to boot that blue dog, lockheed martin falating hack Jane Harmon out of my congressional district. Democrat that she is.

[birdbrain]

That's fucking bullshit! In U-fucking-tah, we had a lot on the ballot including several constitutional amendments. I want my vote counted. To say that it's too expensive to count votes is like saying having a democracy is too expensive (I'm not attacking you personally, geekster, if this is the way it really is but this is not acceptable). I intend to find out the facts regarding this issue in Utah.....I hope to be out of there by the next election, in any case

[geekster]

Aha ... I was WRONG. In my state the Secretary of State can declare an official winner before absentee and provisional ballots are counted but about 66% of absentee ballots are eventually counted and added to the final certified totals. About 1/3 are disqualified, mainly for improperly filled out forms, missing dated signatires, outer envelope not signed, etc. It can very from county to county.

The problem with absentee ballots, though, is (you guessed it) voter fraud. If you need money, I can tell you that I will give you $50 if you vote for my candidate. In the land of big spending campaigns, $50 for a guaranteed vote probably isn't bad in a tight race. I watch you fill out the ballot, you give it to me, I mail it for you, I give you the $50. Or even worse ... I tell you that you need to vote a certain way to keep your job then follow the same procedure.

Absentee balloting has the potential to be non-secret. It opens the door to possible coersion of voting.

[Q_]

Vote day should be a national holiday. No one works, everyone (who wants to) votes.

[Simply Joel]

Vote day should be a national holiday. No one works, everyone (who wants to) votes.

run it passed you congress-person and make it happen, pilgrim.

[Alpha]

Voted in Oakland, Californ-aye-ai with a paper ballot, instead of those damn deibold things. I wouldn't have minded using a computer if there was any kind of reciept or paper trail, but I think Diebold felt that would interfere with the GOP winning...

baseless accusation with nothing (facts/cites) provided to back them up... just rumor and innuendo.

I think you jumped the gun on this one, Joel.

From http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0828-08.htm

Voting Machine Controversy
by Julie Carr Smyth

COLUMBUS - The head of a company vying to sell voting machines in Ohio told Republicans in a recent fund-raising letter that he is "committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year."

The Aug. 14 letter from Walden O'Dell, chief executive of Diebold Inc. - who has become active in the re-election effort of President Bush - prompted Democrats this week to question the propriety of allowing O'Dell's company to calculate votes in the 2004 presidential election.

O'Dell attended a strategy pow-wow with wealthy Bush benefactors - known as Rangers and Pioneers - at the president's Crawford, Texas, ranch earlier this month. The next week, he penned invitations to a $1,000-a-plate fund-raiser to benefit the Ohio Republican Party's federal campaign fund - partially benefiting Bush - at his mansion in the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington.

The letter went out the day before Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, also a Republican, was set to qualify Diebold as one of three firms eligible to sell upgraded electronic voting machines to Ohio counties in time for the 2004 election.

Blackwell's announcement is still in limbo because of a court challenge over the fairness of the selection process by a disqualified bidder, Sequoia Voting Systems.

In his invitation letter, O'Dell asked guests to consider donating or raising up to $10,000 each for the federal account that the state GOP will use to help Bush and other federal candidates - money that legislative Democratic leaders charged could come back to benefit Blackwell.

They urged Blackwell to remove Diebold from the field of voting-machine companies eligible to sell to Ohio counties.

This is the second such request in as many months. State Sen. Jeff Jacobson, a Dayton-area Republican, asked Blackwell in July to disqualify Diebold after security concerns arose over its equipment.

"Ordinary Ohioans may infer that Blackwell's office is looking past Diebold's security issues because its CEO is seeking $10,000 donations for Blackwell's party - donations that could be made with statewide elected officials right there in the same room," said Senate Democratic Leader Greg DiDonato.

Diebold spokeswoman Michelle Griggy said O'Dell - who was unavailable to comment personally - has held fund-raisers in his home for many causes, including the Columbus Zoo, Op era Columbus, Catholic Social Services and Ohio State University.

Ohio GOP spokesman Jason Mauk said the party approached O'Dell about hosting the event at his home, the historic Cotswold Manor, and not the other way around. Mauk said that under federal campaign finance rules, the party cannot use any money from its federal account for state- level candidates.

"To think that Diebold is somehow tainted because they have a couple folks on their board who support the president is just unfair," Mauk said.

Griggy said in an e-mail statement that Diebold could not comment on the political contributions of individual company employees.

Blackwell said Diebold is not the only company with political connections - noting that lobbyists for voting-machine makers read like a who's who of Columbus' powerful and politically connected.

"Let me put it to you this way: If there was one person uniquely involved in the political process, that might be troubling," he said. "But there's no one that hasn't used every legitimate avenue and bit of leverage that they could legally use to get their product looked at. Believe me, if there is a political lever to be pulled, all of them have pulled it."

Blackwell said he stands by the process used for selecting voting machine vendors as fair, thorough and impartial.

As of yesterday, however, that determination lay with Ohio Court of Claims Judge Fred Shoemaker.

He heard closing arguments yesterday over whether Sequoia was unfairly eliminated by Blackwell midway through the final phase of negotiations.

Shoemaker extended a temporary restraining order in the case for 14 days, but said he hopes to issue his opinion sooner than that.

[DVD Burner]

Joel always jumps the gun.

[cowboyangel]

Joel always jumps the gun. :lol:

I'll second that...thanks kelly

[cowboyangel]

Joel always jumps the gun. :lol:

I'll second that...thanks kelly

oops sorry, not always.........

[Zulegoona]

I voted this morning, at the peace academy.


Geekster, I'm a little disappointed that you don't have the same confidence in your self that your boss seems to have.

[Dork]

Vote day should be a national holiday. No one works, everyone (who wants to) votes.

If you give people a day off, many of them will leave town. Some would take Monday off and turn it into a 3-day weekend. Also, it's not as if nobody works on a national holiday.

[Simply Joel]

Voted in Oakland, Californ-aye-ai with a paper ballot, instead of those damn deibold things. I wouldn't have minded using a computer if there was any kind of reciept or paper trail, but I think Diebold felt that would interfere with the GOP winning...

Voted in Oakland, Californ-aye-ai with a paper ballot, instead of those damn deibold things. I wouldn't have minded using a computer if there was any kind of reciept or paper trail, but I think Diebold felt that would interfere with the GOP winning...

baseless accusation with nothing (facts/cites) provided to back them up... just rumor and innuendo.

I think you jumped the gun on this one, Joel.

From http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0828-08.htm

Voting Machine Controversy
by Julie Carr Smyth

COLUMBUS - The head of a company vying to sell voting machines in Ohio told Republicans in a recent fund-raising letter that he is "committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year."

The Aug. 14 letter from Walden O'Dell, chief executive of Diebold Inc. - who has become active in the re-election effort of President Bush - prompted Democrats this week to question the propriety of allowing O'Dell's company to calculate votes in the 2004 presidential election.

O'Dell attended a strategy pow-wow with wealthy Bush benefactors - known as Rangers and Pioneers - at the president's Crawford, Texas, ranch earlier this month. The next week, he penned invitations to a $1,000-a-plate fund-raiser to benefit the Ohio Republican Party's federal campaign fund - partially benefiting Bush - at his mansion in the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington.

The letter went out the day before Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, also a Republican, was set to qualify Diebold as one of three firms eligible to sell upgraded electronic voting machines to Ohio counties in time for the 2004 election.

Blackwell's announcement is still in limbo because of a court challenge over the fairness of the selection process by a disqualified bidder, Sequoia Voting Systems.

In his invitation letter, O'Dell asked guests to consider donating or raising up to $10,000 each for the federal account that the state GOP will use to help Bush and other federal candidates - money that legislative Democratic leaders charged could come back to benefit Blackwell.

They urged Blackwell to remove Diebold from the field of voting-machine companies eligible to sell to Ohio counties.

This is the second such request in as many months. State Sen. Jeff Jacobson, a Dayton-area Republican, asked Blackwell in July to disqualify Diebold after security concerns arose over its equipment.

"Ordinary Ohioans may infer that Blackwell's office is looking past Diebold's security issues because its CEO is seeking $10,000 donations for Blackwell's party - donations that could be made with statewide elected officials right there in the same room," said Senate Democratic Leader Greg DiDonato.

Diebold spokeswoman Michelle Griggy said O'Dell - who was unavailable to comment personally - has held fund-raisers in his home for many causes, including the Columbus Zoo, Op era Columbus, Catholic Social Services and Ohio State University.

Ohio GOP spokesman Jason Mauk said the party approached O'Dell about hosting the event at his home, the historic Cotswold Manor, and not the other way around. Mauk said that under federal campaign finance rules, the party cannot use any money from its federal account for state- level candidates.

"To think that Diebold is somehow tainted because they have a couple folks on their board who support the president is just unfair," Mauk said.

Griggy said in an e-mail statement that Diebold could not comment on the political contributions of individual company employees.

Blackwell said Diebold is not the only company with political connections - noting that lobbyists for voting-machine makers read like a who's who of Columbus' powerful and politically connected.

"Let me put it to you this way: If there was one person uniquely involved in the political process, that might be troubling," he said. "But there's no one that hasn't used every legitimate avenue and bit of leverage that they could legally use to get their product looked at. Believe me, if there is a political lever to be pulled, all of them have pulled it."

Blackwell said he stands by the process used for selecting voting machine vendors as fair, thorough and impartial.

As of yesterday, however, that determination lay with Ohio Court of Claims Judge Fred Shoemaker.

He heard closing arguments yesterday over whether Sequoia was unfairly eliminated by Blackwell midway through the final phase of negotiations.

Shoemaker extended a temporary restraining order in the case for 14 days, but said he hopes to issue his opinion sooner than that.

Joel always jumps the gun.

I'll second that...thanks kelly

so, please allow me to make sure i have your assertions in the correct context....

#1. the article asserts there is foul play because an executive from a voting machine vendor and a state legislator are both Bush supporters and attended a fund raiser together.

no crime in that.

#2. the Democrats cry foul play, yet where is the State's Attourney? the legislative ethics committee?

no harm in letting those responsible investigating bodies look into the matter is there?

#3. and where is (state) it the Diebold's are being used by Kelly?

Ohio? because that is where the Democrats assert the foul play has occurred... if it isn't Ohio, aren't you (my e-playa counterparts) "jumping the gun" by assuming that if Ohio legislatures and one Diebold executive are conducting themselves less than ethically in Ohio (which hasn't been proven in a court of law), then all other state legislatures and other Diebold executives are doing the same unethical behavior in other states?

gee, it all seems to fit together nicely if you all your faith and/or observations are defined by negative qualities (greed, cheating, etc)...

or maybe i should say it more concisely... you are seeing exactly what you are looking for... if you were looking for something positive, then you would see positive things... unfortunately, as i read your comments, i see the converse.

jumping the gun? heck, my guns are still locked away for the appropriate moment.

and by the way....

[Alpha]

No no no Joel. Kelly insinuated that the reason Diebold didn't put in a paper trail is because it would interfere with their sinister plans to hijack the election in favor of Bush. You said that was a baseless accusation. I proved that it was, in fact, NOT a baseless accusation because the very CEO of Diebold promised to "deliver Ohio's electoral votes" in favor of Bush. It's an obvious conflict of interest and get real -- would you vote on a machine that Michael Moore created, that left no paper trail?