Bush loyalists far and wide have casually dismissed concerns over possible election fraud in Ohio as "nonsense" (although the language used is usually far more severe). Like a fundamentalist's claim that there is "absolutely no evidence" for evolution, these same loyalists insist there is "absolutely no evidence" of voting irregularities in the 2004 Presidential race.
Trouble is, they're mistaken. Again.
I don't know how many of you have followed the long blog threads on the topic (there have been thousands), and if you haven't, chances are you're at a disadvantage, since the MSM has barely even acknowledged the issue, much less given credence to any concerns over the outcome.
In his August 2005 article, Mr. Miller describes the highlights of the problems in Ohio and the results of the House Judiciary Committee's 5- week investigation.
Even so, the evidence that something went extremely wrong last fall is copious, and not hard to find. Much of it was noted at the time, albeit by local papers and haphazardly. Concerning the decisive contest in Ohio, the evidence is lucidly compiled in a single congressional report, which, for the last half-year, has been available to anyone inclined to read it. It is a veritable arsenal of "“smoking guns" —and yet its findings may be less extraordinary than the fact that no one in this country seems to care about them.
See, election fraud just isn't sexy. People's eyes tend to glaze over when talk turns to state regulations for recount procedures, particularly when the discussion gets complicated by machine count vs. hand count, touch screens and hard drives. What should appeal by definition to everyone in America is suddenly received about as warmly as a CNET op/ed (No offense to the CNET boys, of course).
Mr. Miller's piece provides enough detail about incidents that are suspicious at best, so if you're unfamiliar with the charges made regarding miscounts, voter disenfranchisement, software tampering and poll access problems, this is a good resource for a quick catch-up.
What's been infuriating to me since Nov 3, is the same thing that infuriates me now, as always: GOP'ers refusal to even entertain the notion of problems, much less address and solve them. So, I guess they deserve credit for consistency, if nothing else. Nevertheless, the damage done is not Bush's problem or the GOP's problem so much as it is the COUNTRY'S problem.
"“If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization,"” Thomas Jefferson said, "it expects what never was and never will be."” That much-quoted line foretells precisely what has happened to us since "“the news" has turned into a daily paraphrase of Karl Rove's fevered dreams. Just as 2+2=5 in Orwell'’s Oceania, so here today the United States just won two brilliant military victories, 9/11 could not have been prevented, we live in a democracy (like the Iraqis), and last year's presidential race “was, at the end of the day, an honest election.” Such claims, presented as the truth, are nothing but faith-based reiteration, as valid as the notions that one chooses to be homosexual, that condoms don'’t prevent the spread of HIV, and that the universe was made 6,000 years ago.
In this nation'’s epic struggle on behalf of freedom, reason, and democracy, the press has unilaterally disarmed, and therefore many good Americans, both liberal and conservative, have lost faith in the promise of self-government. That vast surrender is demoralizing, certainly, but if we face it, and endeavor to reverse it, it will not prove fatal. This democracy can survive a plot to hijack an election. What it cannot survive is our indifference to, or unawareness of, the evidence that such a plot has succeeded.
Those who've been receptive to the idea that election fraud allegations are just "more liberal hysterics" need to turn off Fox, dig in and get up to speed on what's clearly and plainly documented in the public record. Those who've been dismissed as "sore losers" need to keep hammering away on this issue. And those of you in the middle that are scratching your heads over why this is still being discussed, have a look at some of the following links:
Preserving Democracy: What Went Wrong in Ohio
Eye on Ohio
Proof of Ohio Election Fraud Exposed
BlackBoxVoting.org
Whatever did happen needs to come to light and find a solid place in the national discourse. This isn't a partisan concern. People arguing that point clearly have no real understanding of the 2004 election issues, and worse, fail to appreciate that if our elections are not freely accessible to all citizens, we are not a democracy. If our voting records cannot be clearly and easily confirmed, we are not a democracy. If we replace transparent manual processes with flawed machines made by arguably corrupt corporations, we are not a democracy.
This is not about Bush. This is about America.
Sincere thanks to Rational Being
2 comments:
I hope people were able to read the Diebold post- if not, nudge nudge. Is the idea to lie and deny no matter what it is, counting on a certain number of people just believing anything? Its like the National Enquirer- they can put alien infants, Jacko and Oprah's love children, and claim that Bradd Pitt is really a woman...I know first hand he's not...I digress) and they know MOST people laugh it off. But there is that peculiar segment of people that make us scratch our heads.
CB will say I am being elitist, but do you hear the twangy music from "Deliverance" again??????
If you hear it, it's because I'm humming.
I don't know too many people that can put "first hand" and "Brad Pitt" in the same sentence. Don't drop a name and then not dish, missy.
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