vote early?

[wesw]

maybe it is just me, but it is kinda dumb to wait in line to vote on the first day of early voting, isn t it?

you might get on the boob tube, but you still have to wait in line.....

I think that early voting should be banned and that election day, every two years, should be a national holiday

[Big RR]

While I have no problem with a national holiday, I generally believe that anything that reasonably enhances voter turnout, including early voting and mail in ballots should used as well. The more people that vote, the better the chance that we get a government that reflects the views of the people.

[wesw]

too much crooked shit goes on, RR.

you are a lawyer, you must see plenty of crooked shit, for or against....

let us use paper ballots and join together to vote.

I don t trust the tallies, really.

paper ballots and concerned citizens to count them, we have tools, we can rebuild us.....

generally I agree with your sentiments tho.

[Bicycle Bill]

too much crooked shit goes on, RR.

You mean, crooked shit like when the person who didn't get the most votes still ends up 'winning' the election?

-"BB"-

[Big RR]

While I agree there has to be a good way of assuring the votes are properly counted, paper ballots are far from foolproof. We should be looking into a variety of ways to ensure an accurate and honest count. And FWIW, I don't see how early voting necessarily affects the accuracy of the count one way or the other.

BB--sadly, that is the system we have.

[Econoline]

FWIW, I don't see how early voting necessarily affects the accuracy of the count one way or the other.

I don't necessarily agree with it, but I suppose the argument could be made, The more time you give the rats to fuck, the more ratfucking gets done.

[datsunaholic]

We have no actual election day in my State. Just a day the ballot must be dropped off or postmarked. There are no polling sites. All done by mail.

[Lord Jim]

I agree with the sensible approach advocated by this insightful fellow, three years ago:

If I could wave a magic wand, I'd conduct voting this way:

I'd have early voting on the Saturday and Sunday prior to election day, period. No more of this voting a month or or more before the actual election; it undermines the democratic process not to have everyone who is voting doing so in a contemporaneous manner with availability to the same information about the candidates and ballot issues. (a lot can happen in the last two months of a campaign; why should people be voting before the campaign unfolds?)

I'd make the actual Tuesday election day a national holiday.

I'd restore the absentee ballot process to what it was intended to be; a resource for those with some legitimate reason not to be able to get to the polls. No more of this "no excuse" absentee ballot nonsense let alone the "send an absentee ballot to every registered voter" insanity....

If with two early weekend days, an election day holiday, and access to an absentee ballot if you have a legitimate need, (and all the public and private organizations available to help you figure out where and how to vote, and to help get you to the polls) you still can't manage to get your lazy, ignorant, apathetic ass to bother to vote, then fuck you, we don't need you participating in the process.

In fact our democracy will be healthier if you don't...

[wesw]

well, that s reasonable...., might as well throw in the middle Monday too tho....

[Big RR]

I can agree with most of the post but strongly disagree with this:

If with two early weekend days, an election day holiday, and access to an absentee ballot if you have a legitimate need, (and all the public and private organizations available to help you figure out where and how to vote, and to help get you to the polls) you still can't manage to get your lazy, ignorant, apathetic ass to bother to vote, then fuck you, we don't need you participating in the process.

IMHO, if a democracy is to work, we should make voting as easy and open as possible so everyone has an opportunity to vote and have that vote counted. He makes a good point about having people vote more or less at the same time, but otherwise why erect unnecessary barriers to one's exercise of their vote?

[wesw]

I didn t see anything about barriers?

[Big RR]

Look a little more closely.

[wesw]

I see an elitist disrespect for lesser beings, but I can t see the barriers.

enlighten me.