What if the ’06 election is stolen?

[mikelewis]

What if it’s stolen so blatantly and outright that you finally see what so many have been screaming about? What if in the days prior to the election, your candidate, your issue is way ahead in the polls? Let’s say a poll taken the night before gives your candidate/issue a 59% yes to 33% no and 8% undecided. You go to sleep with high hopes for victory. The next morning, you wake up early to vote before any lines and before work. You breeze in to the booth, cast your ballot and it’s off to the grind.

Later that night, reports start to come in of the early tallies and exit polls that so far match the expected result. You’re passionate about this election, more so than any other. You believe that it’s time to make a change in the terrible direction this country is headed. With this in mind, you watch the results off and on all night, hoping you’ve made a difference.

At about midnight, you finish brushing your teeth and getting ready for bed. You flip on the television just to make sure you’ve won. You stare at the TV for a second as the late results are splashed across the screen. Your candidate/issue is trailing 52 to 48 and though it’s still too early to call it, it’s pretty well over. You stare dumbstruck as a little thought starts to creep into your head. It starts to grow and suddenly, with laser clarity, you know that the election was stolen. At that moment, I want you to think back and remember all of those who tried to warn you. And just to get it out of the way now, “I told you so”.

http://www.freepress.org/departments/display/19/2005/1559

[Quixote1818]

1. Then the Right To Bare Arms is suddenly a good thing.

:nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:
:nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:
:nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:
:nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[niyad]

2. ummm, what do naked arms have to do with it?

[Quixote1818]

4. I prefer naked arms to the ones with cloths on

:beer:

I was actually talking about women giving birth to arms.

:beer:

[BrotherBuzz]

3. Maybe that explains my propensity to cache pitchforks

Who wants to work on the torches?

[countmyvote4real]

5. Count on it unless you are in NC.

The US electoral process is corrupt when it cannot be verified by open source tabulations from third party contractors. WE might care about this, but the average voter that gets to the poll is going to give up, because their vote didn't make a difference.

If we're lucky they will finally know that WE need REAL election reforms now. Hello, Ohio?

[SillyGoose]

6. This comes to mind...

http://www.unnecessaryroughness.com.nyud.net:8090/gallery/data/500/11Time-thumb.JPG

[garybeck]

7. I think you mean *when* it's stolen, not *if* n/t

[OneBlueSky]

18. exactly . . . just look at the results in Ohio this year . . .

for a preview of what will happen next year . . . and STILL our "leaders" are not (for the most part) addressing the issue . . . and certainly not with the seriousness that it demands . . .

[Fiendish Thingy]

8. I will begin the process to become a Patriot In Exile,

most likely in Canada. And if things don't change for the better by 2008, reluctantly, sadly, I will leave. I will not labor, pay taxes nor consume (i.e. shop) in a country where democracy is a charade, the press is no longer free, and war and torture are committed using my dollars, and using my falsified consent.

[Swamp Rat]

9. Life itself would literally change in the USA.

Folks better brace themselves for the worst! :scared:

[Auntie Bush]

10. There will be riots on the streets.........I hope!

[bambo53]

11. Why not head it off beforehand?

How about a Letter to the editor blitz, demanding that voting process be assured to be be clean in your local and state elections. Raise hell about it all across America before the election so that they know that we're watching the bastards.

[Tiggeroshii]

12. I'd believe it in Ohio, but...

The total electorate that voting machines make up is less than 30%. If people are so fed up with this Bush crap that they vote against their party or not at all overlwhelmingly, then the non-diebolded precincts(ie many places outside Ohio, etc) will most likely turn. If this happens, it will most likely only be for one term, but it will be long enoguh for Conyers to do his magic and start major investigations into this elections stealing!

[marions ghost]

17. you are possibly too optimistic IMO...

Electronic touchscreen voting machines were used by some 35 million voters in 2004, and that number will increase in 06. You also have to remember that most states use central tabulators, which are electronic and highly vulnerable to tampering, regardless of how votes are recorded at the precincts.

These are the states that invested heavily in touch-screen (DRE) voting machines by 2004 --and are in the process of completely converting to them:

California
Florida
Nevada
New Mexico
Georgia
Texas
S. Carolina
N. Carolina
Kentucky
Tennessee
Virginia
Louisiana
Maryland
New Jersey
Delaware

IN ADDITION TO the above, there are 22 other states which use opti-scan systems. The opti-scan systems, while better than touch-screens in that there is a paper ballot, are still vulnerable to easy forms of electronic tampering.

And this doesn't even take into account the myriad dirty tricks/monkey business/disenfranchisement beyond e-voting, which is documented to occur in just about every state.

Suggest to read Mark Crispin Miller's book, "Fooled Again"
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0465045790/002-2252484-6928035?v=glance&n=283155&s=books&v=glance

[Tiggeroshii]

20. I'm looking to buy Miller's soon as soon as I can invest in it

I live with the understanding and the acceptance that we probably might not be able to do enough on the grassroots level to convince people they are really that bad. Unless more Mark crispin Miller's come around and really speak out against it, I don't see teh machines going away or decreasin by 06(except for major lawsuit to break out starting in places suc ahs New Mexico).

I hope however, that the anti-Republican sentiment will be so strong in non diebolded areas, despite the 45-5o million machines that could be around, that Democrats can still get the maajority and get to banning them before 08. If anything is going to be done about it, the Democrats need the majority, and if Demos lead the Republicans by a good 30-40% by the midterms, I can see 15-20 incumbents getting ousted as opposed to the extra 30 or 40 whose seats are saved thanks to diebold

edi- I understand this may be wishful thinking, so I am keeping my fingers crossed, and am probably going to give a good number of friends and family and professors Miller's book for Christmas

[marions ghost]

23. Waking up the electorate

to the election issues and putting pressure on the Democrats and state legislatures is critical now. The Democrats are not going to prioritize cleaning up the system without a lot of public pressure.

I appreciate your hope that things can possibly change if there is enough lack of support of Republicans in non-Diebold areas. But I guess the point I'm making is that a) touch-screen voting is spreading as we speak, and also b) that the system is so controlled by partisans that it doesn't take much to skew an election without anyone being able to do much about it, despite what the voters think.
The voters, the public, are not in control of elections.

It's important to remain optimistic and acknowledge small milestones in this struggle while NEVER underestimating the opposition. You and I are on the same page about that. :)

[KingFlorez]

13. Then we are doomed

[Crazy Guggenheim]

14. Then it's war!

[KingFlorez]

15. Let me be serious now

The whole 2006 election will boil down to 2 states: Pennsylvania and Ohio, because they have more House seats competitive than any other state. We need to win a minimum of two in either state. Pennsylvania, I think we'll be stunt free, but Ohio is so entrenched with the GOP they're not going to go easy.

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

16. What if? you mean when, right?

[mikelewis]

19. When is right...

I am 100% convinced they have the Ohio election rigged. If the party is looking for any help in Ohio they're sadly mistaken, especially since Blackwell is running for Gov. The only hope is that since Bob Frikatis is running under the Green ticket, he may be able to put enough heat on them to make it somewhat fair.

[Balbus]

21. I guess there's no point in even voting then...

If it's a foregone conclusion like many on here say, why even bother to go stand in line if it's not going to do any good? :shrug:

[tx_dem41]

22. I see the defeatists are out in force. Let me pose a question I ask...

frequently.....

If you believe that the election will be stolen (and many appear quite certain), do you vote? If so, why do you do something that you are so certain is futile?

[onenote]

24. you have to vote because you won't know which ones they steal

until after the election. The one's Democrats win--they didn't try to steal. The one's Democrats lose -- those were stolen. See, its simple. :sarcasm:

onenote

[WI_DEM]

25. I'm not saying that it can't be stolen

or that '00 or even '04 weren't stolen, but why wasn't '05 stolen especially in NJ and VA?

[tx_dem41]

26. WI_DEM.....

quit trying to make heads explode. :evilgrin: