Reply #101: One big reason [View All]

[PATRICK]

people start tearing into each other is when strategies are different, frustrated and conflicting. There have been problems with fraudulent 'voter reform' organizations and websites ranging from obvious shills to the splits at blackboxvoting to compromising or militant sites. While this is happening meanwhile, the DNC has made its own weird choices or non-choices and seems more unaware than even the public at large of the danger.

In the early stages despite revealed software codes, investigations of the suspect vote machine companies and state verification programs, etc. etc. HAVA went its merry "positive" way with added provisions that might have helped- but only the GOP intentions get enforced. The "paper trail" was unfortunately the major "issue" that separated from attacking the core problem and probable fraud and corruption. Frustrating as well, the paper trail became the issue of "debate" that distracted from the dominant spread of paperless machines.

Curiously, activists who had been ignored and had garnered pretty damning evidence at will all across the country began to have problems, split or retreated to useless corners. Tensions are pretty high considering this stage of battle- where the fundamental dynamic has not been changed and more- not less- fraud enabled gizmos- have been installed. Worse, the DNC itself has been even more ineffectual and self-effacing in fighting vote suppression, getting votes counted in the first place, and all the old fashioned stuff including media definition of everything.

Now is not the time to tear apart the "imperfect" because frankly, it all has been pretty imperfect since no broad based coalition, no frontal assault by the DNC has taken on the core issues of vote fraud, fundamentally flawed voting technology, vote suppression or anything else except soft bi-partisan "reasonable" approaches. As in dealing with any snake the fraud has the upper hand hand. No changes no. WE want reform! YOU cheat! They investigate Chavez's voting machines. take down the Ukraine, ignore Mexico! We say, reasonably, we want paper accountability, because, you know, there is no record of the vote once the glitchy machine swings into action. They delay, ignore, install bum printers, try to put in more crooked interfaces, cite costs, the plight of the disabled.

Time goes by. Time for the objectives to be clearer. Get the electronic paws off the vote. It is useful only as a check with speed and accuracy that could actually inhibit manual vote fixing if properly employed as a check and balance. Mandatory audits and hard records come first.

Palast, in his own words and his own investigations, is immensely involved in the massive vote suppression, the manual fixing mechanisms necessary because the cheaters are so unpopular and need to show their raw power. It is legitimate because little has been accomplished trying to stop it anymore than the flood of HAVA "reform".

This is the real state of affairs. Trolls barely matter because the massive walls against increasing fraud have not been broken. The main progress is only that MORE people want to vote against the regime and fewer will be able to do so. Polls and exit polls must be used fairly to protect the vote at this stage because no other nationwide protection exists. More people must physically man the polls and challenges be prepared to mount challenges.

Volunteers have been betrayed or misguided before and will be again. Reasonable, smart compromises will be shown again to be fatal mistakes. Revelation is not the same as change or criminal justice or media victory. We need to build beyond the scattering of vote protection organizations and especially key on those with local success. Those who have developed the paper trail campaign or the vote principle list(transparency, etc) are just a beginning. Staying trapped or ineffectual on any level means ultimate division, institutional disease, temper turf flare ups, or premature sense of accomplishment and triumph. We have not morphed to the next stage of better, wider, cross genre organizations. The growing public sensitivity to the cause HAS grown without media support or practical power as well. The last ones to be effected are unfortunately very critical: ALL honest politicians and election officials and lawmaker and especially the national Democratic Party.

Maybe if the headlines screamed the real issues for a couple of weeks it would make the establishment- what's left of anyone honest that is- wake up and stop skirting the discomfort.

Collapsing in upon ourselves for any reason is suicide- and facilitates the murder of democracy and the nation.