Voting Rants and Raves

RAVE: Paper ballots! Major Cool! Hey Diebold: De-program THIS! Kentucky introduced the old lever voting machines just before I turned 18, so I've never voted on a paper ballot before. Wow, they even provide the pens. Optical scan machine reads the filled-in squares (what, no ovals?) This is SO cool. Makes me feel a connection to my grandmother, who turned 21 in 1919, and so was among the first women in the country who voted in the 1920 presidential election after the passage of the 19th Amendment.

RANT: Paper ballots? Hmmm. What if you accidentally fill in the wrong square and want to change your vote? At least with the machines you have a chance to review your votes and change them. And the scanning machine just ate my ballot and then waved a flag at me. How about a receipt?

RAVE: Line moved pretty quick - 15 people in front of me at 11:30 a.m. and I voted in 15 minutes. First time I ever saw a poster of "Voting Rights and Responsibilities." Somebody feeling some heat, maybe?

RANT: I TOLD you last year that if you elected a repug Secretary of State you'd regret it. After Attorney General Jack Conway posted "Election Rumor Control" that specifically said you could vote while wearing campaign clothes and buttons, I wore my Obama shirt and one large and three small buttons. And right on cue the precinct worker showing me the paper ballot took one look at my shirt and froze. I should have waited to hear what kind of racist, ignorant, repug stupidity she was about to spout, but instead I whipped out the copy of Conway's Rumor Control that I had brought with me and pointed to "... the wearing of campaign apparel such as hats, buttons, or shirts will not prevent a voter from voting." She started making excuses and I said it was HER responsibility to know the law, and shame on her for challenging me.

RAVE: I got challenged! Too bad she caved so quick; I had the Obama campaign's fast-response legal team on speed dial.

RANT: Middle-aged guy was there with two kids looking about 12 years old. White boy and biracial girl. Stupid fucker made them stand off to the side while he voted instead of letting them be a part of this once-in-a-lifetime election. PLEASE, if you have access to children, take them with you to vote! Let them push the button or fill in the square. Give them something to tell their great-grandchildren about.

Cross-posted at Watching Those We Chose.