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Those of you that follow me know that Biden was not my first choice, he came in at around 15th. He does however have the distinction of being the only candidate that was running that I've worked for. I work for a science-based agency and was tapped to do some work for his office back in 2009 and one of the things that struck me about him was that he was very concerned that A) our work was accurate and B) that he understood it correctly (also C) he loves maps, but that's besides the point). Now there are many many reasons he would make a better president than our current one, but I wanted to offer this one from personal experience. He believes science is real and listens to experts in their field. Compared to someone who listens to nothing other than his own ego that alone would be reason enough to win my vote even if we didn't have the whole our democracy being at stake business.
So yesterday we completed our city election which was conducted without any in-person voting. Being on the business end of a "mail-in" election I figured I'd do a debriefing, consider this an Ask Me Anything about mail-in voting.
First, mail-in voting and absentee voting are the same thing, the process is identical. For the benefit of folks that have never voted absentee that process is as follows:
Voters need to complete a form with their voter information and signature and that form serves as an oath swearing that you are who you say you are and that form and your completed ballot are sent in together. When we receive your ballot that oath is checked against the list of registered voters and we check off that the vote has been received and assuming that you are on the list the ballot is then opened and counted. In our county the actual counting is done via optical scanner and the paper ballots are saved in case a recount is needed. We have separate people doing the checking in of voters and doing the scanning, so the check-in people never see the completed ballots and the scanning people never see who the ballot came from in order to keep the votes anonymous.
The one difference between absentee ballots of the past and doing all all-mail election is the volume of ballots you have to process and that does create some logistical headaches. For our little city election we counted 2,077 ballots and split up the process over 4 days - it took us about 17 hours with a 7 person team to do that, that's processing about 122 ballots an hour. For November, if our county gets what it got in 2016 it's going to take 1,347 hours of processing to count them all - now they're obviously going to have more than the 1 team counting votes, but still, that's going to be a multi-day task no matter how you slice it.
Normally absentee ballots are counted after the in-person ballots, but I'm hoping the county is allowed to begin counting them early as we were in order to have timely results. By having 3 processing days before the actual election day we were able to complete the process and announce a result almost immediately after the deadline for receiving votes as we only had to count the last minute voters, the rest were already done.
Potential problems with mail-in voting:
One is user error, about 5% of the ballots we received we were not able to count because we didn't have an oath to go with the ballot and so had no way to check if the ballot actually came from a registered voter. Be sure to read the instructions that come with your absentee ballot and follow them.
The second is relying on the USPS for delivering and receiving votes. The Maryland primary election was plagued by voters not getting their ballots in time. This problem can be mitigated by having pick-up and drop-off locations independent of the postal service. We used 3 drop boxes for ballots so that voters did not need to depend on the mail to get their votes in on time and that seemed to work very well, but I'm sure the city will get a trickle of votes mailed too late for them to count. Do not wait until the last minute to send in your votes!
Despite those two potential problems, the turn-out was amazing, we got 38% and the highest previous in the history of the city was 29%, so having the election be mail-in only definitely did not discourage participation. I'll also say the actual processing of votes went very smoothly, no problems were encountered, but as mentioned above it is slower than in-person voting. Come election day in November there is a very good chance we will not have results the same day.
Things that are not a problem:
Voter fraud. There is very little opportunity for fraud in this process. I suppose someone might be able to try and impersonate another voter, but if that voter also sent in a vote or any of the poll workers know that person then you're going to get caught, and you better believe we'd send that on to the state police. Even if you had a crooked judge there isn't anything they could do as none of us are working independently at any time, plus there are poll watchers observing the process. We had exactly 2 ballots come in that weren't in our poll books - and those might very well be legitimate as we know our poll books were missing last minute registrations (those 2 are not thrown out, they're counted as provisional while the county double checks their registration rolls). We did not have any evidence of anyone trying to vote more than once.
Pandemic safety thoughts. That this is safer than an in-person election is without question. For the voters there is no risk at all as they can complete the process without coming into any physical contact with another person. For us poll workers there is still some danger, we are inside for a prolonged period with other people - but fortunately not many. Most of the time counting workers, poll watchers, and city employees there were 10 people spread out across 2 large rooms, and we were all masked the whole time. Compare that to an in-person polling place which is also inside and the poll workers come into contact with literally thousands of voters, the chance of Covid-19 transmission is obviously going to be higher in-person. Even places that are allowing in-person voting in November I'd encourage you to take advantage of absentee options for the sake of everyone's safety.
Any questions?
First, mail-in voting and absentee voting are the same thing, the process is identical. For the benefit of folks that have never voted absentee that process is as follows:
Voters need to complete a form with their voter information and signature and that form serves as an oath swearing that you are who you say you are and that form and your completed ballot are sent in together. When we receive your ballot that oath is checked against the list of registered voters and we check off that the vote has been received and assuming that you are on the list the ballot is then opened and counted. In our county the actual counting is done via optical scanner and the paper ballots are saved in case a recount is needed. We have separate people doing the checking in of voters and doing the scanning, so the check-in people never see the completed ballots and the scanning people never see who the ballot came from in order to keep the votes anonymous.
The one difference between absentee ballots of the past and doing all all-mail election is the volume of ballots you have to process and that does create some logistical headaches. For our little city election we counted 2,077 ballots and split up the process over 4 days - it took us about 17 hours with a 7 person team to do that, that's processing about 122 ballots an hour. For November, if our county gets what it got in 2016 it's going to take 1,347 hours of processing to count them all - now they're obviously going to have more than the 1 team counting votes, but still, that's going to be a multi-day task no matter how you slice it.
Normally absentee ballots are counted after the in-person ballots, but I'm hoping the county is allowed to begin counting them early as we were in order to have timely results. By having 3 processing days before the actual election day we were able to complete the process and announce a result almost immediately after the deadline for receiving votes as we only had to count the last minute voters, the rest were already done.
Potential problems with mail-in voting:
One is user error, about 5% of the ballots we received we were not able to count because we didn't have an oath to go with the ballot and so had no way to check if the ballot actually came from a registered voter. Be sure to read the instructions that come with your absentee ballot and follow them.
The second is relying on the USPS for delivering and receiving votes. The Maryland primary election was plagued by voters not getting their ballots in time. This problem can be mitigated by having pick-up and drop-off locations independent of the postal service. We used 3 drop boxes for ballots so that voters did not need to depend on the mail to get their votes in on time and that seemed to work very well, but I'm sure the city will get a trickle of votes mailed too late for them to count. Do not wait until the last minute to send in your votes!
Despite those two potential problems, the turn-out was amazing, we got 38% and the highest previous in the history of the city was 29%, so having the election be mail-in only definitely did not discourage participation. I'll also say the actual processing of votes went very smoothly, no problems were encountered, but as mentioned above it is slower than in-person voting. Come election day in November there is a very good chance we will not have results the same day.
Things that are not a problem:
Voter fraud. There is very little opportunity for fraud in this process. I suppose someone might be able to try and impersonate another voter, but if that voter also sent in a vote or any of the poll workers know that person then you're going to get caught, and you better believe we'd send that on to the state police. Even if you had a crooked judge there isn't anything they could do as none of us are working independently at any time, plus there are poll watchers observing the process. We had exactly 2 ballots come in that weren't in our poll books - and those might very well be legitimate as we know our poll books were missing last minute registrations (those 2 are not thrown out, they're counted as provisional while the county double checks their registration rolls). We did not have any evidence of anyone trying to vote more than once.
Pandemic safety thoughts. That this is safer than an in-person election is without question. For the voters there is no risk at all as they can complete the process without coming into any physical contact with another person. For us poll workers there is still some danger, we are inside for a prolonged period with other people - but fortunately not many. Most of the time counting workers, poll watchers, and city employees there were 10 people spread out across 2 large rooms, and we were all masked the whole time. Compare that to an in-person polling place which is also inside and the poll workers come into contact with literally thousands of voters, the chance of Covid-19 transmission is obviously going to be higher in-person. Even places that are allowing in-person voting in November I'd encourage you to take advantage of absentee options for the sake of everyone's safety.
Any questions?
2020 election
31 January 2020 09:27With the Dem nomination contest officially starting with Iowa next week, I'll re-link to my take on the candidates. It's changed quite a bit since I last linked it. I am however still wholeheartedly #TeamWarren and encourage you to vote/caucus for her.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gUdQCqdidVUNAJ8lf865Rb1ULs5oeOgALF31Ao4G37w/edit?usp=sharing
Also relevant Also perhaps relevant, don't take too much stock in the polls, at this stage those should still have a mental +/- 10 points attached to them.
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-iowa-caucuses-are-in-4-days-almost-anything-could-still-happen/
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gUdQCqdidVUNAJ8lf865Rb1ULs5oeOgALF31Ao4G37w/edit?usp=sharing
Also relevant Also perhaps relevant, don't take too much stock in the polls, at this stage those should still have a mental +/- 10 points attached to them.
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-iowa-caucuses-are-in-4-days-almost-anything-could-still-happen/
Immigrants
11 February 2017 08:50It's become pretty clear that the administration are making immigrants public enemy #1. I just want to state unequivocally that immigrants are not the enemy. The people that come are are those that are drawn to America's ideals, they have a more vested interest than anyone in "making America great". Repeated research has shown that the crime rate among immigrants is lower than among non-immigrants. We should be welcoming them, not blaming them for problems that they have nothing to do with.
While I'm at it a shout out to my own immigrant ancestors:
Gus Michul Sr. and Katherine who came from Lithuania in 1905
Frank and Christina Flachbarth who came from Austria-Hungary in 1881
Herbert and Hannah Broome who came from England in 1880
John and Ricky Reinke who came from Germany in 1871
Jacob and Mary Dauwalter who came from Germany in 1865
William and Elizabeth Smith who came from Germany in the 1860's
John Cravener who came from Ireland in the early 1800's
and the Musser, Davis, Waugaman, Learn, Dormeyer, Guyer, and Yockey families that came over from Germany, France, Netherlands, and Switzerland in the 1700's. I'm glad all of them made it and played their part in making America great.
This post inspired by the news that immigration enforcement sweeps have started: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/federal-agents-conduct-sweeping-immigration-enforcement-raids-in-at-least-6-states/2017/02/10/4b9f443a-efc8-11e6-b4ff-ac2cf509efe5_story.html
While I'm at it a shout out to my own immigrant ancestors:
Gus Michul Sr. and Katherine who came from Lithuania in 1905
Frank and Christina Flachbarth who came from Austria-Hungary in 1881
Herbert and Hannah Broome who came from England in 1880
John and Ricky Reinke who came from Germany in 1871
Jacob and Mary Dauwalter who came from Germany in 1865
William and Elizabeth Smith who came from Germany in the 1860's
John Cravener who came from Ireland in the early 1800's
and the Musser, Davis, Waugaman, Learn, Dormeyer, Guyer, and Yockey families that came over from Germany, France, Netherlands, and Switzerland in the 1700's. I'm glad all of them made it and played their part in making America great.
This post inspired by the news that immigration enforcement sweeps have started: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/federal-agents-conduct-sweeping-immigration-enforcement-raids-in-at-least-6-states/2017/02/10/4b9f443a-efc8-11e6-b4ff-ac2cf509efe5_story.html
election thoughts
13 November 2016 10:29Ok, I've had a few days to think about the election.
To anyone who says it's going to be ok - maybe, but I doubt it. Part of the fear is having no idea what Trump will actually do since almost everything he says is a lie, but a bigger part is knowing that if at this point he decides to go full fascist1 there is no one that is going to stop him, and so far he appears to be following in Mussolini's footsteps.
I've seen a lot of posts pointing blame. Third party voters are not to blame, about 2% of the electorate votes third party every election, and despite the added press they got this time around, they did not get significantly more votes - there's no reason to think those voters would vote anything other than third party. The electoral college is not to blame, our presidential elections have never been a straight popular vote and both sides know the rules our elections operate under - at any rate the electoral college is not going anywhere. It boils down to we lost because we didn't convince enough voters that electing a racist, sexist, fascist asshole with poor impulse control was a monumentally bad idea. That should have been an easy sell, but Trump proved the better salesman.
I think a big part of that failure is that we don't talk to people that don't already agree with us. I've seen a lot of people asking for anyone who voted for Trump to leave their lives, I think that's a mistake. We need to convince more folks. It's hard to convince anyone that fear and anger aren't the answers or that immigrants and minorities are not the causes of their troubles if we don't talk. I refuse to tar all Trump supporters with his sins. I don't think most of them are really Trump fans, but they feared Clinton more, or just wanted to send a "fuck you" to Washington. I think they made a big mistake, but they're never going to see that if they are ostracized. Note this is not a call for unity (fuck appeasement) or a call to ignore bigotry, it absolutely should be called out whenever we see it - and if Trump supporters want us to believe they're not all bigots they need to join us in denouncing it. You don't need to be friends, this is simply a call to keep the lines of communication open2 3, even with people who disrespect you, because if we don't, how is that ever going to change? Some of my friends are literally in fear for their lives, either because the ACA could be repealed and they'd be denied health care, or from hate crimes from bigots that feel they don't have to hide any longer (a lot of specific incidents being passed around on facebook are false, but yes this is happening). Trump supporters need to know this, they need to see and hear about the consequences of their votes.
What to do next? Those of us with privilege enough to do so should help protect those most likely to bear the brunt of Trump's presidency, give to organizations that help immigrants, minorities, and women; support their businesses, bear witness and help if they're attacked. Don't be silent. To that end know that my house is a safe haven to anyone that should need it. Watch this administration, don't let our rights disappear without notice, a free press will likely be one of the first to go. Hope that none of this will prove necessary, but prepare in case it is.
1 I'm not using fascist as an insult here, if you don't know what fascism actually is I suggest you read up on it, because that is what we are facing.
2 oh lord, I'm agreeing with Glenn Beck, shoot me now.
3 and I know we need our safe spaces too, I'm not saying every channel should be open, just that if you close your bubble completely, no one will hear you.
To anyone who says it's going to be ok - maybe, but I doubt it. Part of the fear is having no idea what Trump will actually do since almost everything he says is a lie, but a bigger part is knowing that if at this point he decides to go full fascist1 there is no one that is going to stop him, and so far he appears to be following in Mussolini's footsteps.
I've seen a lot of posts pointing blame. Third party voters are not to blame, about 2% of the electorate votes third party every election, and despite the added press they got this time around, they did not get significantly more votes - there's no reason to think those voters would vote anything other than third party. The electoral college is not to blame, our presidential elections have never been a straight popular vote and both sides know the rules our elections operate under - at any rate the electoral college is not going anywhere. It boils down to we lost because we didn't convince enough voters that electing a racist, sexist, fascist asshole with poor impulse control was a monumentally bad idea. That should have been an easy sell, but Trump proved the better salesman.
I think a big part of that failure is that we don't talk to people that don't already agree with us. I've seen a lot of people asking for anyone who voted for Trump to leave their lives, I think that's a mistake. We need to convince more folks. It's hard to convince anyone that fear and anger aren't the answers or that immigrants and minorities are not the causes of their troubles if we don't talk. I refuse to tar all Trump supporters with his sins. I don't think most of them are really Trump fans, but they feared Clinton more, or just wanted to send a "fuck you" to Washington. I think they made a big mistake, but they're never going to see that if they are ostracized. Note this is not a call for unity (fuck appeasement) or a call to ignore bigotry, it absolutely should be called out whenever we see it - and if Trump supporters want us to believe they're not all bigots they need to join us in denouncing it. You don't need to be friends, this is simply a call to keep the lines of communication open2 3, even with people who disrespect you, because if we don't, how is that ever going to change? Some of my friends are literally in fear for their lives, either because the ACA could be repealed and they'd be denied health care, or from hate crimes from bigots that feel they don't have to hide any longer (a lot of specific incidents being passed around on facebook are false, but yes this is happening). Trump supporters need to know this, they need to see and hear about the consequences of their votes.
What to do next? Those of us with privilege enough to do so should help protect those most likely to bear the brunt of Trump's presidency, give to organizations that help immigrants, minorities, and women; support their businesses, bear witness and help if they're attacked. Don't be silent. To that end know that my house is a safe haven to anyone that should need it. Watch this administration, don't let our rights disappear without notice, a free press will likely be one of the first to go. Hope that none of this will prove necessary, but prepare in case it is.
1 I'm not using fascist as an insult here, if you don't know what fascism actually is I suggest you read up on it, because that is what we are facing.
2 oh lord, I'm agreeing with Glenn Beck, shoot me now.
3 and I know we need our safe spaces too, I'm not saying every channel should be open, just that if you close your bubble completely, no one will hear you.
Election endorsements
27 May 2014 22:00So, as previously mentioned, we have primary elections. I'll be voting in the Frederick county Democratic primary. My thoughts on the contested races therein follow.
Governor
Heather Mizeur - is way too awesome to ever actually become our governor. Go check out her campaign site and/or her Wikipedia page. Vote for her.
Anthony Brown - is the establishment candidate and who I expect to win, I don't have anything against him, but don't expect him to do anything other than toe the party line.
Doug Gansler - is a complete asshole, don't vote for him.
( the rest of the candidate list is under the cut )
Governor
Heather Mizeur - is way too awesome to ever actually become our governor. Go check out her campaign site and/or her Wikipedia page. Vote for her.
Anthony Brown - is the establishment candidate and who I expect to win, I don't have anything against him, but don't expect him to do anything other than toe the party line.
Doug Gansler - is a complete asshole, don't vote for him.
( the rest of the candidate list is under the cut )
A reminder that we have a primary election coming up on June 24th. In Maryland you must be registered with a party to vote in that party's primary. The deadline for registering and/or changing your party affiliation is June 3rd.
I know it's primary election in a non-presidential election year, no one votes in those. I strongly suggest that you do so. Especially in a state that's as politically lopsided as Maryland it is usually the primary election that determines the ultimate winner, and local elections have a much more direct impact on your day to day life than the presidential ones do. Even if you don't like either of the parties (and really, I can't blame you for that) it can be worth registering just so that you can vote in the primary, you can always vote for whoever you like in the general election regardless of how you registered.
Particularly in Frederick county we have the brand new positions of county executive and county council members being decided. Do your research before you reach the voting booth.
as a P.S. the county is still looking for election judges. If you can afford to burn the day it's a neat thing to do.
https://voterservices.elections.maryland.gov/OnlineVoterRegistration/InstructionsStep1
I know it's primary election in a non-presidential election year, no one votes in those. I strongly suggest that you do so. Especially in a state that's as politically lopsided as Maryland it is usually the primary election that determines the ultimate winner, and local elections have a much more direct impact on your day to day life than the presidential ones do. Even if you don't like either of the parties (and really, I can't blame you for that) it can be worth registering just so that you can vote in the primary, you can always vote for whoever you like in the general election regardless of how you registered.
Particularly in Frederick county we have the brand new positions of county executive and county council members being decided. Do your research before you reach the voting booth.
as a P.S. the county is still looking for election judges. If you can afford to burn the day it's a neat thing to do.
https://voterservices.elections.maryland.gov/OnlineVoterRegistration/InstructionsStep1
Election stuff
8 November 2012 11:00A few election related links. I'd like to join ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
theferrett in his plea for Republicans to rejoin reality. See also here and here and here on how only listening to a single source of information does not help you, especially when that source repeatedly lies to you. The thing about facts is that they really don't care whether you believe in them or not. I'd really like the Democrats to have an opposition that isn't crazy, but that's just not going to happen as long as said opposition has their heads in the sand. Heck, I'd like there to be a viable opposition to the left of the Democrats, but I know that reality isn't going to support me in that so I'll take what I can get. scaleslea posted a similar sentiment here and minnesattva did here.
In other news, thanks to twitter we can map where the racists are.
Also, Nate Silver facts.
theferrett in his plea for Republicans to rejoin reality. See also here and here and here on how only listening to a single source of information does not help you, especially when that source repeatedly lies to you. The thing about facts is that they really don't care whether you believe in them or not. I'd really like the Democrats to have an opposition that isn't crazy, but that's just not going to happen as long as said opposition has their heads in the sand. Heck, I'd like there to be a viable opposition to the left of the Democrats, but I know that reality isn't going to support me in that so I'll take what I can get. scaleslea posted a similar sentiment here and minnesattva did here.In other news, thanks to twitter we can map where the racists are.
Also, Nate Silver facts.
(no subject)
31 August 2012 10:42As a follow-up:
Mitt Romney tells 533 lies in 30 weeks.
Ok, so misleading statements and exaggerations from politicians are common, what's amazing to me if how often Romney and Ryan's statements are the exact opposite of the truth. They'll also happily repeat lies no matter how many times they're debunked. And the mainstream media continuing to be reluctant to call them on it - this is not conducive to a working democracy.
Mitt Romney tells 533 lies in 30 weeks.
Ok, so misleading statements and exaggerations from politicians are common, what's amazing to me if how often Romney and Ryan's statements are the exact opposite of the truth. They'll also happily repeat lies no matter how many times they're debunked. And the mainstream media continuing to be reluctant to call them on it - this is not conducive to a working democracy.
(no subject)
30 August 2012 09:50Just in case there was any doubt, Paul Ryan's speech was almost entirely lies.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-30/paul-ryan-s-hypocritical-attack-on-barack-obama.html
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/08/30/paul-ryans-speech-in-three-words/
http://www.tnr.com/blog/plank/106730/ryan-most-dishonest-convention-speech-five-lies-gm-medicare-deficit-medicaid
http://www.salon.com/2012/08/30/paul_ryan_the_definitive_fact_check/
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2012/aug/29/night-two-tampa-running-mate-and-more/
http://factcheck.org/2012/08/ryans-vp-spin/
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/08/30/13566768-paul-ryan-stands-on-a-foundation-of-lies
and in the interest of balance (and snark)
http://gawker.com/5939287/seven-inarguably-true-things-in-paul-ryans-speech
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-30/paul-ryan-s-hypocritical-attack-on-barack-obama.html
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/08/30/paul-ryans-speech-in-three-words/
http://www.tnr.com/blog/plank/106730/ryan-most-dishonest-convention-speech-five-lies-gm-medicare-deficit-medicaid
http://www.salon.com/2012/08/30/paul_ryan_the_definitive_fact_check/
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2012/aug/29/night-two-tampa-running-mate-and-more/
http://factcheck.org/2012/08/ryans-vp-spin/
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/08/30/13566768-paul-ryan-stands-on-a-foundation-of-lies
and in the interest of balance (and snark)
http://gawker.com/5939287/seven-inarguably-true-things-in-paul-ryans-speech
on the TSA
31 March 2012 08:22Thanks again to andrewducker for the link: http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2012/03/harms_of_post-9.html a nice summary of what the TSA security circus has cost us.
andrewducker for the link: http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2012/03/harms_of_post-9.html a nice summary of what the TSA security circus has cost us.Early voting in Maryland starts tomorrow. This message is to registered Democrats in Maryland's 6th Congressional District. So Maryland's redistricting has made this congressional race competitive, there are 12! people running for a chance to defeat Roscoe Tea Party Bartlett. If you're a Democrat your mail box has been flooded by ads from two of those candidates, Robert Garagiola and John Delaney flinging poo at each other. One's a lobbyist, one's a banker, both professional politicians who are complete tools with way more money than they know what to do with. Fortunately they are not the only two in the race. I hereby endorse Milad Pooran for Congress. He's a actual progressive, and the only one in the race with a chance at beating the big money. Read about him on his site or ballotpedia and I'd encourage you to not only vote for him but to fling a few dollars his way to help him get his message out.
Having had my election judge training today, a few reminders for Maryland voters. Maryland's primary is April 3rd and Maryland does have a closed primary system, which means you need to be a member of a party to vote in that party's primary. You have until March 13 to register, and that includes any changes such as your address or party affiliation. Note also that Maryland has gone through re-districting since the last election, so you may not live in the district that you think you live in. You can check out a map of the new districts at http://www.mdp.state.md.us/redistricting/2010/congDist.shtml As always, places are still looking for judges and it's not too late to sign up.
(no subject)
28 December 2011 14:09"Every barrel of oil that comes out of those sands in Canada is a barrel of oil that we don’t have to buy from a foreign source." - Rick Perry (source)
My brain hurts.
My brain hurts.
One more link, picked up from friends on FB, http://erratasec.blogspot.com/2011/10/independent-reporting-of.html?m=1 a report of what's actually going on with the protests, makes for quite the contrast to mainstream news reporting.
Some follow-up links, as usual from andrewducker:
What the protesters are protesting - with charts - essentially the lack of jobs and low wages of the jobs that do exist. Doesn't really go too much into the how we got that way though, for that what's wrong with the economy and how to fix it. Also a very nice personal essay about class, sparked a lot of thoughts for me, if I find time I'll write some of my own experiences of class differences.
andrewducker:What the protesters are protesting - with charts - essentially the lack of jobs and low wages of the jobs that do exist. Doesn't really go too much into the how we got that way though, for that what's wrong with the economy and how to fix it. Also a very nice personal essay about class, sparked a lot of thoughts for me, if I find time I'll write some of my own experiences of class differences.
Occupy Wall Street
12 October 2011 13:16Just in case there is any doubt I want to say that I'm 100% in support. As a Discordian how could I not? It's the escalation of chaos in action. It is long past time that the right-wing's monopoly on incoherent rage has been broken.
Sadly I don't think it'll turn in to a left-wing counterweight to the Tea Party, the Tea Party has a huge advantage, namely funding. In a feeble attempt to correct that I'd encourage you to donate to OWS - at least order them a pizza or something.
Also awesome: Occupy Sesame Street - it's on!
Sadly I don't think it'll turn in to a left-wing counterweight to the Tea Party, the Tea Party has a huge advantage, namely funding. In a feeble attempt to correct that I'd encourage you to donate to OWS - at least order them a pizza or something.
Also awesome: Occupy Sesame Street - it's on!
I haven't posted much the last couple of weeks in part due to being captivated by Egypt. It's rare that non-violent protest and civil disobedience are so spectacularly successful. From the blog I linked to earlier, how Eygpt did it - a good look at factors leading to the protesters success including the groundwork laid and conditions specific to Egypt. A lot of what's discussed there is also probably a good indicator of whether the protests will be successful elsewhere. A similar look from Salon emphasizes the economic clout of the protesters.
