good!

it's great to see some coverage of this important book. i just finished it and it's powerful reading.

one caveat: the term 'voter fraud' is used incorrectly. voter fraud refers to dead people voting or voters voting more than once. it is a major component of Republican propaganda, but, in reality, barely exists. It has been used effectively to stir up politicians in order to justify and boost restrictive voter ID laws, which have an disproportionate impact on the poor, the elderly and minorities - all traditional Democratic voters.

Election fraud - vote suppression, voter caging, voting roll purging, the use of electronic voting machines which steal, swallow and flip votes, etc - includes the varied means that lead to massive voter disenfranchisement. This phenomenon, in all its guises, is alive and well in the 21st century. Election fraud is the means by which a demographically challenged party can somehow overcome its disadvantage and pull off victory after victory, or shave the margins off its competitors' edge.

If people are finally starting to wake up or willing to acknowledge what is going on here, Loser Take All is a good place to start.

by Joan Brunwasser (129 articles, 3329 quicklinks, 3 diaries, 580 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 6:58:28 AM
 

Wait a Minute

Now, I was one of the Official Green Party Observors in Ohio 2004. Is the fact ever mentioned that if it were not for the Green Party presidential candidate, this conversation may not even be going on? Or is it easier to blame Ralph Nader for the Bush Administration?

Jason, you are right about the nature of Voter Supression and Electoral Theft. In fact,, I have long called the elections of 2000 and 2004 violations of the 1965 Voter Rights Act.

I also know that MY presidential candidate, Cynthia McKinney has been talking about this issue for a very long time. Just not in the "Progressive", Nation magazine or Air America.

So, what has been the open, public position of Barrack Obama on this issue, this blatant violation of the 1965 Voter Rights Act? Is he just too busy collecting corporate money and reaching out to Republicans to take a leadership position on this most critical issue?

While talking empty rhetoric on Change You Can Believe In? 

by Michael Cavlan (5 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 178 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 11:47:29 AM
 

in my opinion

nothing short of a 28th amendment to the constitution will secure once and for all the electoral process from private interests.

a national convention of state delegates will surely propose such an amendment. congress will not.

 http://www.foavc.org

http://www.articlev.org

by john de herrera (32 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 119 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 2:20:39 PM
 

John

National delegations of States calling for a ratification of said Constitutional Ammendment will be led by who?

After all, there were attempts to have states push for Impeachment also. It failed miserably because the Democratic Party fought it on the state level also. Not rank and file Democrats who supported it but the LEADERSHIP of the Democratic party.

Hold them accountable and I mean with more than just tough talk or this will go no-where.

by Michael Cavlan (5 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 178 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 2:44:35 PM
 

Good job

Great story, Jason! Surprised you didn't mention Bev Harris and BlackBoxVoting.org though. That's where I first learned about election fraud.

by Mark Welkie (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 43 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 3:59:29 PM
 

source code

He who controls the source code controls the outcome of the election. That is true in any election that uses computers for voting or counting the votes.

Joseph Stalin said, "It is not who votes that is important, but who counts the votes."

Stirling

by Lord Stirling (11 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 80 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 5:17:37 PM
 

Attention Democrats:

If you want your candidate elected in 08, you better watch how the ballots are controlled, and how the votes are counted. 

If it turns out to be Clinton vs. McCain, I wouldn't worry too much, as they're so similar in policies, and so close to the same corrupt power elite that manipulates DC like a puppet.

If it's Obama, I'll bet a declining dollar for sure there's gonna be lots of evidence for vigilant Citizens to catch.

BradBlog.com

BlackBoxVoting.org

ElectionDefenseAlliance.org

Poll shows 92% of Americans want right to see ballots counted

Now that's a demographic that spans party lines; I'll take a pol who's committed to defending the Constitution over a Republocrat, any day 

by Better World Order (4 articles, 277 quicklinks, 13 diaries, 728 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 8:26:21 PM
 

the fox guarding the hen house

I've been saying that Hillary took OH and TX not too legitimately. I guess when the Dems realized what the Repubs were doing, instead of investigations and trying to correct the problem, they decided to join them? Why else would they be so slow to investigate? I am sure of SOME congresspersons are on board to conduct hearings, but for the most part, most drag their feet.

PBS had a great special on this topic. It left me with this sinking feeling that my vote was about as good as hollering the name thru a canyon. The echo was fun, but the outcome sucked!

My Math teacher in college didn't give me much hope about my vote either. She explained the electoral college. That's obsolete for the size of our country today.

Not sure if this will work: 2008 election results

by shirley reese (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 206 comments) on Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 8:41:36 PM
 

"join em"

yeah, most Dems and Reps are beholden to the same monied interests anyway- with evoting machines they can take turns winning and make sure no honest Dem, Rep, indy or 3rd party wins any election they dont want them to

Paper ballots, hand counting in the local precincts on election night, publicly accountable chain of ballot custody is the most secure, reliable and transparent process and has been used efficiently and successfully all over the world and is still done many places in the US- like the NH townships where the votes differed from the big city count where they were counted on Diebold machines, which were all controlled by insider LHS- see coverage by blackboxvoting.org bradblog.com and electiondefensealliance.org

FOAVC.org If Congress won't call a convention for proposing amendments as required, why have they proposed so many themselves? 

by Better World Order (4 articles, 277 quicklinks, 13 diaries, 728 comments) on Friday, April 25, 2008 at 1:08:47 AM
 

Election Fraud

 Be prepaired for George Bush has something up his sleeve. This moron will attack Iran or do some more stupid and start world war III. we may not have a election in November 2008. Bush the (HYPOCRITE) ALONG WITH THE OTHER MORON Dick (HEAD) Cheney are two criminals. Bush in his speaking to groups  says their should be free elections every were in the world. he preaches Democracy and beleaves in god. YES THIS IS A PURE HYPOCRITE. he beleave's in god and beleaves in killing millions of people in other counteries.sends our military to a unjust war. over 4025 military deaths. but the real subject here is we need a revelution or Rebellion to stop this CRAP. YOU PEOPLE SIT ON YOUR BEHIND'S AND DO NOTHING but complain. we will never have a democracy doing nothing. infact we never had a democracy. we now live under a dictator.

by vincent passiatore (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 141 comments) on Friday, April 25, 2008 at 12:03:22 AM
 

Majority rule

Learning of Socrates' trial was my first exposure to the inadequacy of a contest to determine what is best.  The lesson of the electoral college was another institution complicit in rigging the outcome. But over all, I thought the outcome was genuine.

It wasn't until 2000 that I would feel the frustration of a stolen election.  By 2004, I was sensitized to the game, and when I heard of the Republican shenanigans: telling blacks the election was Wednesday, not allowing inspectors to check that the calibration was zero to start (in Georgia), registering a tally of ten times more voters than even showed up (in Ohio), or making people stand eight hours in the rain on line (in New Mexico), I felt the situation had become irremediable.

Everywhere on the planet, the ritual of casting a ballot has become the very symbol of democracy, yet more often than not, the choices are forced, and the outcome so disorderly or distorted that violence results. 

I believe we need an international referendum on civil rights and responsibilities, to make the electoral process safe and accurate.

Education about the issues, both local and national and even international, must be injected into the process, with a public information panel installed, to decipher the influence of money or the motivation of personal or corporate profit.  An even better reform would be clean money: public funding for candidates, public broadcast of the issues.

And finally, all demographics of voters must be enabled to participate, or better still, empowered and motivated to participate in the process, with accessibility and transparency at every stage of the electoral exercise, being the most desirable outcome of election reform. 

by ladyguru (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 22 comments) on Friday, April 25, 2008 at 1:28:26 AM