I Contain Multitudes

I commented today in comments that Cleveland was not as Pro-Kerry as Cincinnati was Pro-Bush HypoSpeaks as poll numbers that prove me wrong. What it also says is that Cincinnati has more Kerry Support than I could have ever imagined. My only assumption is that these are metro numbers, not city proper numbers.

I have been reading HypoSpeaks for a while and have been meaning to add them to the blog roll. Sorry for the delay in do so!

Bias or Bad Journalism? (yet again)

We have an article on Michael Moore's visit to UC yesterday. We hear quotes from Moore, which is good. We get a report of who else appeared with Moore, which included REM. What we then got where quotes from Republicans: Susanna Oakley had tepid yet anti-Moore comments:

Susanna Oakley, an art history senior from Montgomery, said she was not impressed.

"He didn't say anything of substance. He's ridiculous," she said.

That was fine on the surface. That is her opinion and it would have been fine giving the opinion of someone who does not like Moore.

Then the writer ends with an indirect comment that was supposed to fact check Moore, but instead was just propaganda

Moore is twisting the facts, said Lindsay Quinn, a UC senior and organizer of the College Republicans. Those poll watchers will be impartial observers, she said, adding that Democrats will be observing too.

Now, first these are not poll watchers or "observers," they are challengers. They are there to challenge voters, not just watch the polls. They can't do anything but use their cell phone if they think something is wrong at the polls. What sets me off more is that this came from an "organizer of the College Republicans." Why not wake up and fact check what this person says before you publish it as a retort?

Where were the comments of someone who likes Moore and what he said? There were surely plenty of Young Democrats at the event, and the reporter could have gotten a quote, and if she did get a quote and the editor did not print it, well there is your clear cut bias from the Enquirer.

The Columbus Dispatch On Web?

I don't subscribe to the The Columbus Dispatch, but I was able to read this story about the Dems suing the GOP over their pre-emptive hearings trying to kick over 2,000 people off the voter rolls.

In the past the Dispatch limited access to subscribers on all stories. They have been added to Google News, so I guess they don’t know or no longer mind.

Desperation?

Bush won Ohio in 2000. Bush won the Cincinnati area very easily in 2000. Why would he waste time holding a rally here 2 days before the election when he could be in a location where he might sway some voters?

Does Bush's base around here need any more motivation? I guess he needs a big crowd for good video shots, but I would have thought that a visit to Iowa might do him better. I think Bush's chances are fading in Ohio, but in Iowa he is doing much better. But Hell, I hope Bush spends all day Sunday right here in Cincinnati. It does not look good if you spend time in the last days of the campaign in places where you already are supposed to have won without question and without much effort.

Since it is on Sunday, maybe I will try and get tickets. I wonder if you will need to sign an oath or pass a FBI background check to go to it. I have been getting almost daily auto-dialer recorded propaganda from Bush, so someone foolishly has me on a list of undecided voters or something.

QCF Interview Fanon Rucker

Michael Atlman interviews the Democratic endorsed write-in candidate for Prosecutor.

Cyber-Jingoism From Bush

Funnel Cake reports that the Bush Campaign web site is rejecting Non-US visitors. He also provided a link to some confirmation from international users. Why would this be happening? Why would he keep people out? Are people being blocked only in certain countries? I could see this would be a way to stop a denial of service attack, but I would like to know if IP's from Israel are being block, because they UK's are being blocked. How are international Bush voters, Americans abroad, supposed to read his website? Now, I am not saying they should, but I am all for people having the chance to read what all candidates are saying.

Mullane's Back?

We have hope Mullane's Parkside Café will reopen.

Let the Lies of Bigots Begin!

Well, this is not the start but the Zenith of lies from the anti-homosexual crowd pushing another level of theocracy on the state. Their goal is to make homosexuals subhuman, denying them every possible person right or protection any lawmaker could give them. Phil Burress is out to rid the state of gays. Burress is nothing but a theocratic fascist. He and his minions, which include the likes of Carl Linder and Anthony Munoz, hate gays and want to crush their lives so badly that they leave the city and the state.

Hyperbole you ask? Am I overstating things? No, I am not. If I has said genocide was going on, that would have been hyperbole in this case. Here we have a group of people who do not like gays, do not support freedom for gays to be full citizens of the United States or of Ohio.

They also are out to limit the rights of unmarried heterosexuals, but hey, they are living in sin!!!! Let's smite them! Down into the pits of HELL all ye Heathens must go! We can't stand two adults living together who don't get permission from Jesus!!!! We must stamp out all sex!

Ok, that was hyperbole. Or was it?

Meltdown

Yes, we are in the middle of a heavy campaign. Everyone's emotions are a bit high, but one shows signs of serious problems with comments like these:

I've never had a problem with Wes. But I think it's funny that he'll sit in his room and write this on his blog, but cannot even confront me with it when I see him at events. Wes, you can be tough behind your computer screen, but can you be tough in person??

Steve Fritsch just might want to reconsider running for office. When you try and steal Zell Miller's act you not only look foolish, you come across like a schoolyard thug. You know the episode...bully is made to look bad...comes looking for the smart kid...lunch money tends to change hands. I guess Steve wants to rumble behind the monkey bars.

What to Do If You Are Challenged at the Polls

The Dayton Daily News, the best newspaper in Southwest Ohio, does something practical and a public service to the community. They give advice about what to do if you are challenged at the polls, presumable by a Republican operative.

1. The challenger will have to state why your right to vote is being challenged. The four reasons they can challenge are that they believe you are either not 18 or older, not a U.S. citizen, not a Ohio resident for the past 30 days or not a resident of the county and precinct in which you are trying to vote.

2. One of the poll workers and you will move no less than 10 feet from the challenger.

3. You will be asked to take this oath: "Do you swear or affirm that you will fully and truly answer all of the following questions put to you, touching your place of residence and your qualifications as an elector at this election?"

3. You will be asked a series of questions about one of the four areas in which you are being challenged.

4. If you refuse to answer fully all questions or are unable to answer them fully, or your answers indicate you are too young, not a resident or a citizen, you will not be able to vote.

5. If you answer the questions to the satisfaction of the poll worker, you will be given a ballot and will be allowed to vote.

What if you want to appeal? The decisions of the poll workers are final.

What if the challenger appears to be attempting to cause delays or intimidate voters? The chief poll worker, the presiding judge, can expel them from the polling place.

Source: Oct. 20 memorandum, "Challenger and Witness Guidelines," Ohio Secretary of State's Office and the Ohio Association of Elections Officials.

I looked for a copy of this memo online at Secretary of State's website, but could not find it. I would have thought this would have been part of their PR, but I guess they might hope people are fearful and don't vote? I can find no other links or even mention of this memo but in the DDN.

Mixing Politics

For some reason I feel this article had me in mind. Now, I know they didn't. I am read by a handful at the Enquirer, but not most, but I guess I don't mind speculating about some conspiratorial jab telling me that I guess I had better stick to my own kind.

I would honestly find it impossible to marry a conservative. I have dated a conservative before and my opinions were not a boon to the relationship, neither were hers. What is missing from these examples are how they feel on social issues. I think that is mostly where people can find common ground. I could handle differences on economic policy and foreign issues, but on big social issues like Church-State, abortion, free speech, freedom of the press, I really could not put with a hard right-winger. I guess I want a woman who has a brain, and is not afraid to use it on the same level I am. I see the hard right-winger females as one who thinks her role in life is to be a modern June Cleaver.

I am sure I have just disappointed a great many conservative women out there, but oh well.

Rucker TV and Radio Ads

Hamilton County Prosecutor write in candidate Fanon Rucker has produced a television and a radio ad.

Oh, and he got the Enquirer Endorsement.

Vote Challengers; Poll Watchers

It is an outrage that people would stoop to such a thing here in Cincinnati. Dayton was to be free of it, at least organized by the GOP, but now they will. There is nothing stopping some idiot from doing trying this on their own, even though people are supposed to be registered before hand. I would not be surprised if we don't see this kind of thing from some crackpot around the city. The Observer reports on the trouble Ohio is going to be having. That trouble will not be from people trying to double vote, but instead from those trying to suppress the vote in the name of prevent double voters.

What I want to know, are the GOP putting poll watchers in every location? Will be asking in my precinct who the watchers are. I may wander by some other locations and see if there are watchers stationed out in Anderson Township.

The GOP has dropped some challenges to registrations, but the headline is misleading, of course.

Jesse Taylor of Pandagon chimes in with a lament on the disenfranchisement the GOP is angling towards.

Culture of Fear Rules Editorial Pages Too

The Toxic Twins of the Cincinnati media landscape have put out their endorsements for President and wouldn't you know it, but they backed Bush. Yes, shocking I know. (cough, cough)

What is not so laughable is that both newspapers base their endorsements on fear. They don't come out and say it directly, but their motivation is quite clear. They have fallen into Bush's plan. Bush has perpetuated the fear of terrorism on the entire country. He has shown us no way to ever defeat it and his actions have helped solidify a future with an increased number of groups and countries out to do the USA harm. For a reason I can't fathom both editorial boards (or just publishers) think that the guy who knows how to make more terrorists want to kill Americans can somehow defeat them. If this attitude exists on a wide enough scale, which it does in most Bush supporters, then we as a nation are doomed to a new Cold War. Islamism (the war blogger term for Muslim terrorists or all stripes) will be or is the new Communism. A new enemy has been created to fear, and Bush has succeeded in making the Enquirer and Post fear it like a child fears the bogeyman. No wonder they fear OTR. Here is a critique of both.

The Cincinnati Post
I really am perplexed by the poorly written (on a contextual basis) editorial in the Post. It felt like a bad casserole, with chunks of really rotten meat stinking up rather bland pasta. They praise Bush, but somehow find him blameless for Iraq:

In his first major execution of that policy, the war in Iraq, we believe Bush was led astray. It is deeply troubling that, having won the battle we were unprepared to win the peace.

...

He is an honorable man who, without precedent to guide him, made a difficult decision to invade Iraq as one early step in a struggle with terrorists that, sadly, may last for decades.

So, let me get this straight, they believe in Bush's leadership, but think he led us astray in the war on Iraq. Now, they do for some unknown reason say Bush was led astray. I thought the President was the leader. If he is not the leader, then who is and why are they not President? I thought the President was the person who they praised for his leadership, but now they say he FAILED by letting someone else lead us? Their logic here is confusing doubletalk at best, and well, just plain crap at worst. Their last line should read "With George W. Bush we choose stability, continuity and decisive leadership (well except on that Iraq thingy)."

What was most disappointing is that they filled it with propaganda. They used anti-Kerry talking points right from the GOP as crib notes for their writing session. Are they really are fooled by the Bush/Cheney line about Kerry's position on Iraq? It is one thing for a politician to say them or one of their flunkies or even for a Bush worshiper, but for professional journalists? They even trout out the bullshit comparing Bush's "legislative" record to Kerry's. It was as if they just reworded Bush's debate prep. Why not just put a picture of Flipper in there in be done with trying to appeal to a literate crowd. Did Portman write this?

The Cincinnati Enquirer
In their editorial today I just don't grasp what the hell they are saying:

The next four years will require a president who has the fortitude not to waver in the face of terror. George W. Bush and John Kerry are both strong and patriotic men, but we believe the times call for America to be consistent. For that reason we support Bush.

Consistency? That's the reason for wanting Bush? They don't want to change? So more of the same, as Kerry puts it, is just what they want? I hate to whip out my favorite quote from RWE but:

"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

They then put forth lies

We wish the president were willing to acknowledge the mistakes that were made, and to hold accountable those in his administration who made them. But other nations and past administrations all believed Saddam had the weapons and was willing to use them.

It is true that most countries agreed that Iraq had failed to account for all of his WMD after the first Gulf War, but not that he still had them in any volume to harm us or that he had any significant programs to build more. Bush said all of that was true, but like the Post, they put the blame on someone else in the Administration, not on the man at the top. Why? Why allow Bush to dodge responsibility? Again like the Post the Enquirer can't seem to be consistent itself in praising real leadership, instead of Bush's brand of walking in front of driverless bus.

On homeland security they don't say why Bush is good, they say that Kerry can't pay for anything he wants to do. WHAT ABOUT YOUR CANDIDATE? What the hell? It is as if Bush just did everything wrong but we can't fix it, and neither can Kerry, so lets stick with the bad President we have just because he gave us a false sense of security 3 years ago and that can sell us more newspapers.

On economics they just lie:

He's wrong. The over-$200,000 category isn't just "the rich." It's also the bulk of the small and independent business owners in America - a segment of the economy that creates many of the new jobs we need.

A small business man who has revenue over $200,000 does not have taxable income over $200,000. They will not be effected by this. If you have taxable income over $200,000 then you are fucking rich. 99% of Enquirer staffers, if not a higher percentage, do not have taxable income over $200,000, so don't play games here. If the publisher can't make the payment on her third home, well don't spend more than you earn. I don't shed tears for the rich paying a little more than I do.

On Social Security the Enquirer is just ignorant. I have a 401K plan. I don't need another one, as Bush wants me to have. I need an insurance program to help provide me a guaranteed base income when I retire. I need it to be there when I retire. I don't need to put money into stock brokers and Wall Street Banker's pockets.

Neither paper was willing to touch on the social issues. They value money and killing more Muslims over freedom from theocracy, reproductive freedom, and equal citizenship for homosexuals. I guess they don't value those freedoms because they don't fear things that don't personally affect them. Now, to be fair the Enquirer does support the repeal of Article XII and they oppose Issue 1, but both issues conflict with Bush's positions. Not to mention they don't address Bush's future Supreme Court picks which will put this country back in a pre-bellum mindset.

I was not shocked by either editorial. Both papers have conservative editorial boards, all be it not extreme right-wing ones, but more importantly they fear pissing off the West Chester person who sees Bush as a deity, with no flaws. That means they have to back Bush to avoid local flack and a drop in circulation. I wish these newspapers could learn something from the glowing coverage they give the President, be "bold" and don't fear the burbs. Instead, fear your own conscience when you don't tell yourself and your readers the truth.

Wes Flinn and Nick Spencer also comment.

Provisional Ballots

In comments someone brought up the Enquirer's editoral on the "provisional ballot mess." The ruling of a Federal Court has been overturned by 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The relevant text of the Help America Vote Act is Title III Section 302(a) as follows:

(a) Provisional Voting Requirements.--If an individual declares that such individual is a registered voter in the jurisdiction in which the individual desires to vote and that the individual is eligible to vote in an election for Federal office, but the name of the individual does not appear on the official list of eligible voters for the polling place or an election official asserts that the individual is not eligible to vote, such individual shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot as follows:

(1) An election official at the polling place shall notify the individual that the individual may cast a provisional ballot in that election.
(2) The individual shall be permitted to cast a provisional ballot at that polling place upon the execution of a written affirmation by the individual before an election official at the polling place stating that the individual is

(A) a registered voter in the jurisdiction in which the individual desires to vote; and
(B) eligible to vote in that election.

(3) An election official at the polling place shall transmit the ballot cast by the individual or the voter information contained in the written affirmation executed by the individual under paragraph (2) to an appropriate State or local election official for prompt verification under paragraph (4).
(4) If the appropriate State or local election official to whom the ballot or voter information is transmitted under paragraph(3) determines that the individual is eligible under State law to vote, the individual's provisional ballot shall be counted as a vote in that election in accordance with State law.
(5)(A) At the time that an individual casts a provisional ballot, the appropriate State or local election official shall give the individual written information that states that any individual who casts a provisional ballot will be able to ascertain under the system established under subparagraph (B)whether the vote was counted, and, if the vote was not counted, the reason that the vote was not counted.
(B) The appropriate State or local election official shall establish a free access system (such as a toll-free telephone number or an Internet website) that any individual who casts a provisional ballot may access to discover whether the vote of
that individual was counted, and, if the vote was not counted, the reason that the vote was not counted.

The crux of the issue with the law depends on how you define Jurisdiction. From my viewpoint I see the county as the definition of Jurisdiction for the State of Ohio. The county is where voter registration is controlled. It can't be voting precinct, which I don't think can quality as any type of jurisdiction. There is no foundation to claim any control or jurisdiction over a precinct, other than by the county. It could be the local jurisdiction (city, village, township), but that would actually be much more complicated than county. I could live in the city of Cincinnati, but fall among multiple state office boundaries. I would still have to have some variable type of ballot including all offices and issues for everyone in the city. The county would then have to have provisional ballots for precincts with the same races and issues.

The remedy is rather simple. All you need, which is what I think the Judge advised, is that each county create a standard county wide ballot. It would include all offices and issues, which are listed in every precinct in the county. That becomes the provisional ballot used for the person who thinks they should be registered in the county. As long as they are registered in the county, that ballot then counts. They do miss out on voting for many local races and issues, but they still can vote.

An additional solution that should happen before provisional ballots are brought up would a system (which partially exists, but needs to be improved) to help people find and then get to the correct precinct. We have a system now to help people fine the right voting location, but no way to get them there if they can't get there on their own. If they can't make it to the other location they will just not vote, making the provisional ballot a good second choice for that person, allowing their vote to count at least on some level. This is not rocket science. This would not cause confusion. This would not increase fraud. A person could commit as much fraud with Blackwell's restrictive provisional ballot as with this fair version. So claims of such are false and just cover for the real desire, suppressing the vote of poor and minority voters.

As of this morning I can't find a copy of the 6th circuit ruling online, I would guess it might hit tomorrow. I do not know their rationale for reversing the ruling. At this late date we are facing a mess because we have people following different guidelines and Blackwell lost his credibility and thus any real authority by his push to suppress the vote. We will have a mess.

Anti-Rock-the-Vote Republicans

Was this part of the reason why a local Republican threw a hissy fit and caused a local Rock-the-Vote to me moved from the Public Library? Did a local College Republican group forward propaganda like this article to her? That is the last issue that we don't know, why at the last minute did Deliaan A. Gettler worry about this event? Who put her up to it?

Bad Journalism and Lies from the GOP

Ok, a thief broken into local Bush Campaign HQ. That is horrid, terrible, and just sad. Ok, fine, got that out of the way.

What is disgusting about this Enquirer article and all other coverage on it is that no one mentioned if there was any of the typical political damage done to the place, like signs destroyed, graffiti on walls, etc. A window was broken and money was stolen. That sounds like your run of the mill robbery, yet a local Bush spokesperson is allowed to say:

"We don't know if it's politically motivated or not."

That is technically true. It is technically true that I don't know if I am actually the natural born son of my parents. Now, pictures of my dad when he was younger look exactly like me. You know, all of the pattern's fit, but I don't "know."

In this incident the pattern of a typical robbery fits perfectly. If this was politically motivated, the perpetrators would have left the money and destroyed all of the political paraphernalia, which based on the picture with the article, they did not do. The article lacks information telling us whether anything else was done inside the office. Anyone walking inside could have clear seen if something like "Bush is a Nazi" was spay painted on the wall. It does not surprise me that the Republicans would want to milk this for all it was worth, and they did so very smoothly in this article. They provide just enough room for fools to think it was caused by the Democrats, but without saying so. Jane Prendergast and her editors failed to either ask the question about other damage that would indicate if it was a political based action.

WCPO's article was almost as bad, they at least did not include the quote or anything like it in the article. The on-air story was far worse than the Enquirer, and showed bias. I could not believe the lead spoken by the anchor:

"Someone is apparently out to get the Hamilton County Bush/Cheney re-election campaign."

That is beyond bias and is frankly just a plain old lie. The worst lie comes from GOP spokesman Alex Triantafilou:

"Never-the-less it does fit a bit of a pattern across the country that we've seen with vandalism and ah disruptions at some of our offices and our operations."

Ah, Alex my man, if there is some kind of a pattern, where your stock of signs or stickers destroyed or stolen? Were anti-Bush slogans painted on anything? Did they do anything else to damage the progress of your campaign other than steal money like common criminals? There was nothing fitting a pattern other than a window being broken, which by the way was not the main window, but instead the one near the door so the criminals could get in and steal money. This had nothing to do with politics and when you say you don't know, you are in my opinion lying.

WKRC had little on the incident.

WLWT did the best by reporting by including other incidents that don't fit this case and mentioning Kerry's campaign having problems up in Toledo. They did have the most ignorant quote from Jenny French:

Jenny French stopped by the building for a few yard signs and said the fact that there was no indication of partisan motivation didn't interfere with her first thoughts when she saw the bits of broken glass, WLWT News 5's John London reported.

"I don't think there would be any other point but political," French said.

I am guess that even though all reports show that there were no WMD and no link between Iraq and 9/11, Jenny still thinks we will find WMD and that Saddam was behind 9/11. That kind of ignorance is not as rare as it should be.

Blackwell Grandstanding

Ken Blackwell is now grandstanding against a Federal Judge. Defying a judge is surely a great way to win support for a legal case.

Blackwell and GOP's attempts to suppress the vote is not a new occurrence, but in today's age of inclusion it shows a disdain for the poor and a disdain for the less educated that perplexes me. Why do people feel there should be an intelligence test for voting? Why make it more difficult to vote? If we are going to exclude people because of being ignorant on the issues or being askew of reality, then most of those supporting Bush would be disqualified.

Steve Fritsch's Cheap Tricks

Just so you know that when Steve Fritsch wrote a column attacking Todd Portune he was "not" trying to make a back hand claim that Todd Portune is faking his injury to gain political votes. Steve is "not" using double talk:

Again, I'm not claiming that Portune still doesn't need his wheelchair. I don't know if he really needs it or not. But coming from a man who is as deceitful as Portune is, a man who personifies "politician" in its negative connation, it wouldn't surprise me if he was using it for political gain.

Steve surely is "not" bring up the issue of Portune faking his need for a wheelchair by saying it is possible but he doesn't know.

It is possible, I don't know mind you, that since Tom Brinkman voted against ratifying the 14th Amendment he is a theocratic racist. It is possible with his prior stances on religious issues. Hey, I don't know either way. I really don't have any insight into man at all. I just have to point out that it is possible and would in no way surprise me.

Stick with Kerry

That is exactly what I have been waiting for from Maggie Downs. I would like this type of politically based, yet fun to read column that can balance out Bronson's right wing tripe.

Her sticker counts are similar to what I see, which even though she stuck to more "liberal" parts of town (stayed out of StepfordWest Chester) shows me that either Kerry folks locally are more energized or the Bush campaign is taking this area for granted. I will be interested to see how Bush's numbers inside Hamilton County compare with 2000. I would bet Kerry far exceeds the votes Gore received.