It's 5:46am, and I'm just finishing my first cup of coffee. At 7 I'll be in my car waiting for my local poll to open. Sure I could have voted early, could have voted absentee. But THIS election may be our LAST election. I wanted to do it "old school"
I am voting here at my small Baptist Church polling station. My vote will be one of only some 1200 cast in my precinct because I believe one vote can change the world. Because my community needs my vote. Because I want to see my ballot slide into the optical scanner. Because I want to test a law.
It is illegal in Florida (I don't know about the rest of the country) to take a photograph of our OWN ballots. I'm taking my camera anyway.
Just before my 8x11 piece of paper gets fed into a counting maching that frankly looks rather like a monstrous paper shredder, I'll snap an image or two.
If challenged, I'm ready for the poll workers to call the police. I'm ready to be arrested. I'll go quietly. But while we all wait for the cops, I'll be dialing my bail holding friends. The local chapter of the Florida Bar Association and the ACLU.
And the local media.
It's appalling that sitting here, fear is actually making my hands shake. Fear of Voting. Voting for heavens sake. Talk about a culture of fear!
Well, gotta go, I'm getting my second cup of coffee, then brushing my teeth, fixing my hair, maybe even a little makeup. Wouldn't want my arrest photo to look like Nick Nolte's.
Probably nothing will happen. Probably nobody at the polling station will care. Probably THEY don't know about the law. Probably the law is just to prevent the public from even trying it.
Probably, they don't believe anyone would break this law.
Little Old lady me, civil disobedient, white hair and wrinkles, with a Nikon.
Resistance is Required
I am voting here at my small Baptist Church polling station. My vote will be one of only some 1200 cast in my precinct because I believe one vote can change the world. Because my community needs my vote. Because I want to see my ballot slide into the optical scanner. Because I want to test a law.
It is illegal in Florida (I don't know about the rest of the country) to take a photograph of our OWN ballots. I'm taking my camera anyway.
Just before my 8x11 piece of paper gets fed into a counting maching that frankly looks rather like a monstrous paper shredder, I'll snap an image or two.
If challenged, I'm ready for the poll workers to call the police. I'm ready to be arrested. I'll go quietly. But while we all wait for the cops, I'll be dialing my bail holding friends. The local chapter of the Florida Bar Association and the ACLU.
And the local media.
It's appalling that sitting here, fear is actually making my hands shake. Fear of Voting. Voting for heavens sake. Talk about a culture of fear!
Well, gotta go, I'm getting my second cup of coffee, then brushing my teeth, fixing my hair, maybe even a little makeup. Wouldn't want my arrest photo to look like Nick Nolte's.
Probably nothing will happen. Probably nobody at the polling station will care. Probably THEY don't know about the law. Probably the law is just to prevent the public from even trying it.
Probably, they don't believe anyone would break this law.
Little Old lady me, civil disobedient, white hair and wrinkles, with a Nikon.
Resistance is Required
