The Big Steal of 2004

"Black Box Voting has taken the position that fraud took place in the 2004 election through electronic voting machines. We base this on hard evidence, documents obtained in public records requests, inside information, and other data indicative of manipulation of electronic voting systems. What we do not know is the specific scope of the fraud. We are working now to compile the proof, based not on soft evidence -- red flags, exit polls -- but core documents obtained by Black Box Voting in the most massive Freedom of Information action in history."

Black Box Voting needs your help. They need money, $50,000 to be exact, to file Freedom of Information requests. They need lawyers, they need computer experts willing to go public with proof of fraud. The DNC had an army of lawyers, or so we were told. They weren't willing to deploy them in Ohio, so it was all meaningless.

Corporate control endangers every aspect of our lives already. Now Diebold "We will deliver Ohio's electoral votes to President Bush" and others are truly stealing our democracy. We need to draw a line in the sand to maintain our voting rights.


Do We Need a Bible Thumper?

It is always dangerous to ascribe causes and effects, especially where clueless Democratic pundits and politicians are concerned. Ever since Tuesday an erroneous consensus has formed about the power of the religious right. Andrew Kohut of the Pew Research Center spoke these words of caution in today's New York Times.

But Andrew Kohut, president of the Pew Research Center, warned against placing too much emphasis on "values voters.''

He noted that the percentages of voters who said they attended church once a week or opposed abortion were no greater than four years ago. In addition, a surprising 60 percent of voters said they favored some kind of legal recognition for same-sex couples, with 25 percent favoring marriage rights, and 35 percent favoring civil unions. Thirty-seven percent told pollsters that same-sex couples should not be granted any form of legal recognition.

Mr. Kohut also questioned whether the anti-gay-marriage initiatives that were on the ballot in 11 states helped galvanize conservative religious voters to vote for the president. After all, he said, Mr. Kerry won both Michigan and Oregon, two swing states where gay marriage propositions were on the ballot.

"After reading the newspapers this morning, we're getting a little carried away with the cultural and religious interpretation of this election," Mr. Kohut said. "It was a vote to some extent on values, but it was also a vote on John Kerry and how the American public felt about the way President Bush handled the war on terrorism."