• "Another Right Bites The Dust" [Wither In The Light]

  The Bush administration is suing to give Ashcroft exclusive authority over voting disputes under the 'Help America Vote Act' that was established after the republicans subverted the democratic process of the last presidential election. Talk about having the fox guard the henhouse.
  
  In its argument that 'only the Justice Department, and not voters themselves, may sue to enforce the voting rights set out in the Help America Vote Act', the Bush administration is trying to undo a civil right that was hard won during the 60s, when the NAACP, the AFL-CIO, and the League of Women Voters fought for the right of individual voters to sue to enforce federal election law - a right that the Justice Department and the Supreme Court have upheld until now. But this administration is saying that if they do something to deny you your right to vote, they themselves get to decide whether or not they did anything wrong, and you have no say in the matter.
  
  This is just flat-out anti-American....

• Valuable tips for tomorrow's trip to the polls from Rebecca's Pocket
• "Voter Fraud and Other Election Notes" from Positive Liberty:

  "If these allegations of vote fraud are true, then I fear for our nation's future. Here is just a sample from West Virginia:
  
  In a letter, Berkeley County clerk John Smalls cites calls from a cell phone were made to Eastern Panhandle democrats telling them that they were not registered to vote. The letter also said the calls informed democrats in some cases they wouldn't be able to vote on Election Day [...]

  It's considered an improper act because when upset citizens called the voter registration office to make sure they were registered to vote, indeed they were. So, who made these misleading calls? The Berkeley County Clerk`s Office traced the number voters gave as the source back to the Eastern Panhandle Republican Headquarters.

  The same post documents further acts of fraud from Ohio, Wisconsin, and Georgia. Others can be found across the country, and the pattern is too widespread to be a coincidence.
  
  Don't the Republicans realize that by engaging in fraud, they are actually working against their own best interests? A victory may be sweet in the short run, but the world will remember that George W. Bush's second term was no more legitimate than his first, and possibly quite a bit less. America can only lose in this exchange, for American democracy itself will have been undermined--and the Republicans will be dragged down with it. Don't they see this?
  
  At a time when we are said to be fighting a worldwide battle for democracy, it looks poor indeed to subvert democracy at home. Vote fraud gives us a bad name and--dare I say it--even hurts the war on terrorism. If for no other reason, this would be enough to throw George W. Bush out of office: He and his party have done all they can to make American democracy look repulsive across the world. Our biggest weapon is the good example, and right now, the Republicans are busy destroying it. [read full post]"

• More useful polling place tips from Jason Kottke
• Drug WarRant's state-by-state Voter's Guide:

  "Drug WarRant is providing strategies for the 2004 election that can make a difference on drug policy reform. Most of the focus is on House races, with the goal of tipping the balance on such issues as not interfering with the states when it comes to medical marijuana, repealing the HEA drug provision, reducing the drug war support in Colombia, etc. In many of these areas, a few small races could make a difference..." [read full post]

• "Doughnuts For Democracy" [Too Many Cooks]: even if it means standing in the Krispy Kreme line for half an hour, this little incentive may help your co-workers get out the vote...and don't bother handing me the line about Noodlegate:

  I have a suggestion for everybody who wants to help boost turnout in this election. Send an e-mail right now to your office promising doughnuts for anyone who can bring in a voting receipt on Tuesday or Wednesday. As a 20 year veteran of the workplace I can tell you that people do things for doughnuts.
  
  If they won't vote to change the way the most powerful nation on Earth is governed, maybe they'll do it for a chocolate frosted original with sprinkles.
  
  Why doughnuts? Why not fruit or beef jerky or pre-made salads? Everyone knows that doughnuts are the Official Food of Corporate America. Are you more likely to be motivated by a bunch of lettuce with oil and vinegar or a decadent fried jelly-filled mound of lard and sugar? Maybe I should rephrase that - Because it's tradition!
  
  Give it a shot - maybe that glazed doughnut will help remove the glazed look in a non-voting co-worker's eyes. If your state doesn't give voter receipts, have people in your office attest on a sign-up sheet to their participation in the democratic process before you give them a nice shot of sugar. Hit up senior management first. The toadies in your office will be motivated just by seeing their names at the top of the sheet. And for Pete's sake, go vote yourself.

I received an odd spam email this morning containing a 5-page PDF file entitled "The Wiser Vote," basically asking Americans to not vote tomorrow - because our representative form of democracy is illegitimate, and the only type of worthwhile voting is the direct sort where voters get to speak out on referendums and propositions. The document, or online pamphlet, if you will, was relatively well-written, but contained this sort of cut-off-your-nose-to-spite-your-face separatist type of argument:

"Voters who go along with the [representative elctions] scheme make uninformed choices. When voters choose what they don’t really want, they give a mandate to representatives. Because so many bills that show up in Congress were not topics during the campaign, casting uninformed votes is the equivalent of signing a blank check. The representatives can do anything they want after they are elected. The voters will get distracted and fail to supervise effectively.

Citizens who refuse to go along with the scheme by refusing to vote abandon their franchise. They give up the one thing that separates them from peons on haciendas and medieval serfs. It is smarter to see through the clever scheme and not go to the polling place."

I suppose...but that's like saying the most effective means of protesting air pollution is to stop breathing. I tried to find out who the author of "The Wiser Vote" piece was, but the email contact address included in the PDF file appears to be bogus. The other recipients listed in the header were all at various academic organizations, so I have a feeling it might have been sent as a prank by someone as a school.

Bottom line...whoever you decide to vote for, just vote - period. There is no reason to add low voter turnout to the questions that will undoubtedly surround tomorrow's results.

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