Why is the Media Downplaying Our Voting Scandal?

[kpete]

Published on Friday, May 19, 2006 by CommonDreams.org
Why is the Media Downplaying Our Voting Scandal?
by Danny Schechter

Explain this to me. Why do so few of our TV “journalists” and political reporters seem interested in all the questions that have been raised about the integrity of our voting system?

Voting is at the heart of our democracy. Billions of dollars are spent on political campaigns and tens of millions on covering them. All the networks have election units complete with pollsters, analysts and experts up the kazoo. All of them sound authoritative and spice their commentary with personal war stories and a parade of insider anecdotes.

Just tune in any election night and you have to marvel at all the space age technology, fancy graphics and computer assisted projections. The anchors seem to know as much about the history of voting percentages in each Congressional district as fanatical baseball fans recall earned run averages and the speed of each pitch.

If there are ten military men and women backing up each soldier in the field, there are tens of political aides, advisors, interns and hangers on “supporting” our elected politicians, or is it poli-trikians?. Handicapping elections is one of their specialties and they know most of the races and players by heart.

Compared to corporate machinations, or even military-industrial decisions, politics is over-covered, And yet the actual process of voting—the machines, the counting, the verification, and the questions raised by well informed journalists and analysts about voting fraud seem to bore the punditocracy.

more at:
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0519-32.htm

[lyonn]

1. MSM doesn't want to mess up the next election

Sarcasm

It is mind boggling why this issue is a non-issue with the press.

[GuvWurld]

4. Perhaps not so hard to understand

In a fascist state, there is a joining of government with other institutions. We can easily see in America today the corporate-military-government-media juggernaut. It manipulates and controls We The People under the guise of governing us.

I recently saw another DUer make a good observation which I will paraphrase unfortunately without attribution. It was said that we can think of this juggernaut as Fascism Inc. and down at corporate headquarters Bush, Cheney, etc. represent the government division. Now apply the same to "mainstream media."

It is easy to see how our perception of "reality" is artificially created by what is and is not reported. Both of the last two presidential "elections," 9/11, Iraq's non-existent WMD - these are all examples of how the population at large was basically told what to believe. Not surprisingly, not everyone accepts this bogus reality, and fewer and fewer are buying it every day. But along the way what has been created is a rift in the perception of reality. This is the primary (there are others) way we are manipulated and divided from our neighbors. This has happened on purpose. The resulting divide is not the blue state/red state phenomenon but rather a Cold Civil War.

All of the above is central to the thesis of Blueprint For Peaceful Revolution.

[Kelvin Mace]

2. *sigh*

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=203&topic_id=428678&mesg_id=428683

[kster]

3. ON TV = VOTE THEFT GIG IS UP

and they know it, but they didn't figure in "word of mouth" it will do them in.

[AndyTiedye]

5. Their Job Is To Make Us Accept The Results of Fixed Elections

Do not expect to hear a word about election rigging from the MSM.

[babylonsister]

7. It's easy to say 'that needs to be changed', but

DAMMIT, THAT NEEDS TO BE CHANGED! I don't know how and people have been working tirelessly to do so, but this is supposedly one of our inalienable rights that may be no more. :(

[Stevepol]

6. K&R!!

[Boredtodeath]

8. Because Bev Harris has no credibility

Here's CLEAR proof she led Harri Husti down the path of plagurism.

Published on the CounttheVote.org website in 2004 in response to Brit Williams:

Williams: Voters need to know that even if the election official is sloppy about some procedures, that it is still improbable (vs. impossible) a "rogue vendor" could act alone to change election results (to use an allegation that has been made).

CTV Response: We allow technicans full access to the machines, the data and the votes yet deny the voters any access. We allow technicans to override policies and procedures, yet we would prosecute an elections official for overriding those same policies and procedures. We have granted the "rogue vendor" access while denying the voters and officials the same access. The terms of this contract appear to break the law in Georgia.

Let's use an all too probable example: It is election day, voters have been casting votes on a machine for 2 hours. Suddenly, the machine appears to fail. A technician is called in and alleges that the PCMCIA card (the ballot box) has malfunctioned. The technician replaces the card with one he/she decrees is functioning correctly. No elections official has inspected this card, no official has any idea what this card contains. It is possible that the card is loaded with fraudulent votes. It is possible that the card is not functioning while appearing to do so. It is possible that the ballot box simply isn't receiving every 3rd vote. It is possible the PCMCIA card contains a program to alter the contents of ALL PCMCIA cards during the accumulation process. It is possible that any number of things on that card are altering the election results. It is possible that an unsworn technician has introduced a "rogue" ballot box. And yet, no one has violated the policies and procedures in place. But those policies and procedures have failed to protect the sanctity of the vote.

In fact, this situation DID occur in March, 2004 in Walker County, Georgia:

Problems became apparent with Walker’s first returns about 9 p.m. when neighboring counties were wrapping up their tallies. A Diebold computer technician began providing incorrect numbers to news organizations. The botched returns were fed to the media for more than two hours after the polls closed before the problem was corrected.

“Their technicians were not loading something right,” Walker County Board of Elections and Registration Chief Clerk Barbara Berry said Wednesday. “That’s the reason we can’t even use the modems to get our results in. We have tried and tried to get our results in by modem, and something is wrong somewhere.”

As reported in the Walker County Messenger

Williams: Here are the steps that a person would have to go through to be able to change the outcome of an election.

snip.....

Williams: H) If the software is programmed onto a ROM (Read Only Memory) chip then you have to have physical access to the units.

CTV Response: Not true. One only needs to write a small utility which is a part of the GEMS system, because every time the machines are initiated (turned off and on) the ROM is re-programmed.

Williams: I) With access to the units, you must be able to remove enough of the ROMs in the units to reprogram them. This entails having enough time to either erase the ROMs installed in the units or having enough supplies of identical ROMs that you can have them preprogrammed and inserted into the units... all undetected.

CTV Response: Not true. One only needs to write a small utility which is a part of the GEMS system, because every time the machines are initiated (turned off and on) the ROM is re-programmed.

Williams: J) You then have to have access a second time to remove the "malignant" ROMs after the election and replace them with the real ones you removed (so that you can get away with the election fraud undetected).

CTV Response: Not true. One only needs to write a small utility which is a part of the GEMS system, because every time the machines are initiated (turned off and on) the ROM is re-programmed.

Williams: K) You have to do this not only on enough machines in one jurisdiction (unless your intent is to manipulate a local election - and why would anyone take these kinds of risks for a County Commissioner’s race, or Sheriff’s race or Mayor’s race?), but in many jurisdictions in order to steal a Congressional race or state race? And for the presidency, this would involve thousands and thousands of people.. .unless of course we go to one system nationally (or Internet voting).

CTV Response: Not true. One only needs to write a small utility which is a part of the GEMS system, because every time the machines are initiated (turned off and on) the ROM is re-programmed.

read the rest at:
http://www.countthevote.org/elec_center_0403.htm

[BeFree]

9. Its a house of cards

The whole voting system is based on faith. Taking away that faith by questioning the outcome removes the bottom layer and the house of cards comes tumbling down. But then everyone involved will look like a dumbass.

Not one has yet had the courage to question the basis of faith in the system, and the first one who does will be attacked by the rest.

I'd say when three or more bigshots finally get some courage and work together to spill the beans, the truth will come out.

[GuvWurld]

10. Ahem, Voter Confidence Resolution

BeFree I could not agree with you more about targeting the faith-based nature of the current election conditions. In fact I have been doing just that for more than two years now. The Voter Confidence Resolution (VCR) is the most obvious example. But look deeper and see that this is true not only of the content of the VCR but also its form, a template for focusing others on this same target.

LandShark too has written about this a great deal. He wrote the Foreword to my new book, We Do Not Consent (.pdf), as well as a testimonial on the back cover:

"If in the future we have vital elections, the "no basis for confidence" formulation that GuvWurld is popularizing will have been a historically important development. This is true because by implicitly insisting on verification and checks and balances instead of faith or trust in elections officials or machines as a basis for legitimacy, it encourages healthy transparent elections. It’s also rare that a political formulation approaches scientific certainty, but this formulation is backed up by scientific principles that teach that if you can’t repeat something (such as an election) and verify it by independent means, it doesn’t exist within the realm of what science will accept as established or proven truth."

--Paul Lehto, Attorney at Law, Everett, WA

Thanks for further validating this point we like to emphasize. I welcome any thoughts on how to get a broader base of people using it.

[kster]

11. Its going to be hard for any of them to come out

they are all complicit in the vote theft crime, they either know about it or used it at one time or another, thats the only explanation to the SILENCE from our Government.

The establishment or "the good ol boys" Dem's and Reps need to come clean the election manipulations is over, its out in the open we know what they are doing, and we will get the word out with or without the ON TV media.

Murtha's famous words "the American people are way ahead of us on this" .......... That we are.

[documaker]

12. You have to give the media something it can digest

The "voting scandal" isn't even agreed upon by people who think there is one. (I happen to think there is one.)

The story has tentacles going out in every direction. Still, for more media you need more simplification. The only ways I know of to do this are with visuals and with sub-stories.

I think the message of voting activists is very unfocused and the web sites of voting activism groups are too "inside baseball" for the public imagination. You folks have more work to do.

I study films and I will be happy to contribute ideas if you like. Lengthy technical argumentations cannot capture the American psyche.

[BeFree]

13. Criticism can be of help

I agree we seem scattered. New blood, with new ideas are needed. We have been at this for so long, and become so frustrated, that our vision has become a little clouded.

Our work has been belittled, castigated, and shunned by the major media without a full hearing or any real attempt at understanding our grumblings. They think we are just sore losers. There may be some truth to that, but being that the facts of the case hold up very well under real scrutiny, the sore loser label is unfairly applied.

What we need is a major foot in the door, so to speak. As someone who brings new blood to the cause, what singular item do you think we could use to get a leg up with the powers that be?

[kster]

16. Agreed, and Welcome to the DU

Bring on them ideas so we can get these vote stealing machines and the Crooks who run the operation shut down.

[dfgrbac]

14. Everyone should hear what Greg Palast has to say!

Amy Goodman interviewed Greg Palast in Democracy Now. Here is a part of the interview:

AMY GOODMAN: The scheme to steal ‘08?

GREG PALAST: Yeah. Well, for those who, you know, know my background, I came to the U.S. attention when I broke a story that before the 2000 election, Jeb Bush and Katherine Harris knocked off tens of thousands of black voters off the voter rolls of Florida, and this is what gave the election to George Bush in 2000. It was fixed by knocking off of these black voters. There’s a chapter in the new book --

AMY GOODMAN: You broke this on BBC.

GREG PALAST: Yeah, I broke this on BBC, and to get in the United States, we got Michael Moore to put on a chicken suit and report it here as a joke. And then, thank you very much, Amy, for bringing it across the water and breaking through the electronic Berlin Wall. By the way, all of these stories are stories developed out of BBC and Guardian that basically are blacked out, except for here on Democracy Now! That's very important, because these are the stories that they don't want you to have for good reason. And they don't want you to have it, because -- I then followed up with 2004. Now, it’s accepted 2000 pretty much was fixed. Well, there’s a chapter, “Kerry won.” 2004 was fixed. And the way it was done is that 3.6 million votes were cast and never counted in the United States. That's very important to know. This isn’t Greg Palast conspiracy nut stuff.

AMY GOODMAN: Say the number again.

GREG PALAST: 3.6 million ballots cast, never counted. And that's because they call these spoiled votes or rejected provisional ballots, 1.9 million so-called provisional ballots, and then, most of those don't get counted. And so, whose votes don't get counted? If it was random, it wouldn’t matter. In other words, if these were votes where the machine doesn't record it properly, hanging chads, extra marks on a paper ballot, you had the wrong address on your absentee ballot, etc.

Three million ballots. Whose ballots? If you're a black person, the chance your ballot will be technically invalidated is 900% higher than if you're a white voter. Hispanic voter, 500% higher than if you're a white voter. Native Americans, it’s like 2,000% higher than if you're a white voter. The overwhelming majority -- and I went to the state of New Mexico, which supposedly Bush won by 5,000 votes, 89% of the ballots were cast out of minority precincts that were thrown away. Kerry won New Mexico. You go into the dumpster, and it’s black votes, 155,000 black votes that were chucked away in Ohio. Kerry won those votes. He won Ohio.

AMY GOODMAN: ’08?

GREG PALAST: And ‘08, so what's happening is there is no fix of the system. In other words, just like black folk get bad schools and bad hospitals, they get the bad voting machines, which are going to kill those votes. But they're not satisfied with just letting the ballots be thrown away. They're going to move it along. And one of the things I discovered is the Republican Party has something called “caging lists,” which came to our -- you know, just like you had Friday, the way the Yes Men capture material by using false websites, so through a false website we were able to capture Republican Party internal missives, through georgebush.org.

And so, what happened was is that they sent us a bunch of lists of literally tens of thousands of names of voters and addresses. We were wondering what the heck this was. It turns out these were almost all African American voters, who they were prepared to challenge in 2004, and they did, to say that these people shouldn't vote, because their addresses are suspect. And you'll see in the book that in the lists of thousands of black voters that they were challenging over their address were thousands of black soldiers who were sent to Iraq; go to Baghdad, and the Republican Party challenges your vote.

And that’s the beginning, and because there's been really no action taken, they're accelerating the system now. And the next thing that they’re going after is the Hispanic vote. So when we saw two million votes cast/not counted in 2000, nearly four million votes cast/not counted in 2004, you're going see that number massively increase in challenges to voters in 2008. And that's what's going back to this database story with the National Security Agency.

AMY GOODMAN: We have 30 seconds.

GREG PALAST: So, you have to say, “Why are they collecting this data?” The answer is 2008. It's ultimately all about the elections.

[BeFree]

15. Hmmmm

They did do that in 2000 and it 2004.

Now that the machines are suspect they may just turn wholly towards elimination of votes one-by-one.

It is doubly important that every voter become educated about the whole system and know, ahead of time, just how their vote is to be counted.

I know its a PITA, but any faith we've ever had in the system has been eroded to the point that faith is no longer enough. Now we need knowledge.

It took me thirty some odd years to get to this point, but that was only because dems did get elected a little more than half the time. When it got down to 25% of the time is when I sat up and took notice.

That and reading DU.

[Amaryllis]

17. Not downplaying. Pretending it doesnt exist.

[Einsteinia]

18. They want further consolidation

and the party that loves one-party rule is the Neo-Con-Jobbians

It's nothing personal, it's just good business

(until they realize OOOOpps they're in jail for misspeaking and their children die from air pollution, etc.)