Being in Indianapolis, the Pacers-Pistons brawl has personal significance, and has hit me like it has many other people: shock, disgust, and anger. It has also brought up a flurry of thoughts.
1) Character matters. Along with a lot of the national media, I believe that Ron Artest had justification to go after the fan(s) throwing things at him, especially after he was hit in the face. In a lot of respects, though, that didn’t ultimately matter because it doesn't excuse him.
Unlike many other sports cities, Indianapolis doesn’t deal well with prima donnas or spoiled brats, and the local franchises have always stuck with high-character players. Artest, though, has been an anomaly. He's a loose cannon, and he needed to be traded as soon as possible for whatever the franchise could get; otherwise, he could blow up in the team’s face. Well…guess what? The bomb went off. Now the Pacers, who have been as clean as any team in professional sports, have an indelible stain that may never be wiped away.
In my years on the road playing music, I learned that, although there are a lot of extremely talented musicians, talent is not what matters. Yes, there has to be a minimum level of talent, but once someone has reached that threshold the most important thing is their character. Do they buy into the system of the organization? Can they get along with the other members even in times of adversity? Do they have bad habits (e.g. substance abuse, temper problems) that will cost you down the road? I don’t think that’s much different in any other organization, including sports teams. If your choice is between a guy with incredible talent but character flaws vs. the guy who is workmanlike but is a team player, take the latter without hesitation.
2) There has to be culpability for ALL organizations. Yes, the Pacers were the ones who went into the stands. But the conflict started because a) Piston center Ben Wallace shoved Artest, b) the Piston bench emptied prompting the Pacer bench to do the same, and c) the Pistons fans started throwing beer, ice, and anything else they could get their hands on at the Pacers. Then, the fans excerbated the conflict by coming onto the court, and continuing to throw objects and pour beer onto the Pacers. Yet it’s the Pacers who have had their season ruined by the suspensions that have been doled out. The Pistons are essentially getting off scot-free. How about a fine so large that it prevents them from signing players? Or banning them from selling beer for the remainder of the season? Or something novel, like a $100 million dollar fine, which is reduced $1MM for each offending fan they identify and prosecute (there were easily 100 fans involved)?
Without coming down hard on the Pistons the NBA punishment is hollow, unfair, and it will come back to haunt them, perhaps in ways they don’t even see now.
3) Society needs to clean itself up. What is the parentage of people who think it’s ok to show up at a sporting event and behave that way? How has violence become a solution in situations that don’t call for it, whether it’s at a sporting event or on the highway? At some point, we need to examine ourselves in the mirror and change a few things about our daily lives, and acknowledge that it's not always "the other guy." Perhaps that’s what was meant by “moral values” at the polls.
4) Why the hero worship of those who aren’t heroes? Ron Artest isn’t the kind of athlete who engenders hero worship because he’s a strange combination: a normally quiet loner with tremendous talent, and an anger management problem. But other “self-promoters” have had legions of followers, such as Dennis Rodman, Terrell Owens, Warren Sapp, and Randy Moss, while having questionable to serious character flaws. Why? What has happened in our society where these people are actually revered? And no, it’s not lost on me that all of the above are black. Is that just me as a white person missing something about the black community that allows or even encourages this type of behavior to flourish?
I don’t have all the answers, but I do see the problems. And I know we need to start finding and focusing on answers, without prejudice as to what and where the problems and solutions are found.
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Tuesday, November 16, 2004
DANGER AT THE POLES
Let’s start with a few postulations:
1) On a national scale, the country has moved so far to the right that it has become uncomfortably conservative for a majority of the populous. Yet,
2) the country continues to march ever more rightward, re-electing Bush by a greater margin than in 2000, and increasing the Republican margin in Congress.
3) Just as in nature, when everything gets out of balance politically, there are often violent and unforeseen “corrections.”
This spells a lot of trouble for this country. Republicans apparently see no reason to be anything other than extremely conservative. Democrats, instead of trying to put up candidates that are palatable to the moderates and independents in the electorate, are instead running liberal candidates who are also unpalatable to the mainstream, as well as being offensive to conservatives. This would explain how the country can continue to shift rightward.
It’s not hard to see the potential for some confrontations in the not-too-distant future similar to the late 60s. I’m a bit too young to remember, but it sure feels like what I imagine 1964 must have been, only in reverse: a long string of Democratic presidents with a popular 2-term Republican stuck in the middle. A winnable and controversial election gone awry in 1960; an almost unelectable GOP candidate in 1964; a “just” war gone sour….all leading to tremendous social and political upheaval in 1968 and the ultimate election of an even more divisive President.
Are we doomed to play out the same scenario? Of course things aren’t exactly as they were in the 60s, but I believe the answer is yes if we continue to get our candidates from opposite poles of the electorate.
The concern here is that Dem & GOP leaders fail to see this, and yet each can unilaterally avoid it. Both parties need to be less concerned about their “base” and concentrate on grabbing people in the middle. Yes, a lot was made this election about “turning out the base,” but let’s be real. EVERYONE turned out: base voters, independent voters, fringe voters…anyone and everyone who was actually inclined to vote did so. If the Dems had been able to grab the middle they would have wiped out Bush, no matter how many right-wingers got out to vote Republican.
The challenge is on us as well to ensure that we let our local party leaders know that we need politicians that represent the majority of the country, not its loud-mouthed fringes. If we fail, we run a grave risk of internal upheaval that, just like 40 years ago, no one saw coming and no one knew what to do when it did indeed rear its ugly head.
P.S. If you're on the political fringe, get over your bad self and recognize that retaining or finding your political voice rests with being able to claim the middle first.
1) On a national scale, the country has moved so far to the right that it has become uncomfortably conservative for a majority of the populous. Yet,
2) the country continues to march ever more rightward, re-electing Bush by a greater margin than in 2000, and increasing the Republican margin in Congress.
3) Just as in nature, when everything gets out of balance politically, there are often violent and unforeseen “corrections.”
This spells a lot of trouble for this country. Republicans apparently see no reason to be anything other than extremely conservative. Democrats, instead of trying to put up candidates that are palatable to the moderates and independents in the electorate, are instead running liberal candidates who are also unpalatable to the mainstream, as well as being offensive to conservatives. This would explain how the country can continue to shift rightward.
It’s not hard to see the potential for some confrontations in the not-too-distant future similar to the late 60s. I’m a bit too young to remember, but it sure feels like what I imagine 1964 must have been, only in reverse: a long string of Democratic presidents with a popular 2-term Republican stuck in the middle. A winnable and controversial election gone awry in 1960; an almost unelectable GOP candidate in 1964; a “just” war gone sour….all leading to tremendous social and political upheaval in 1968 and the ultimate election of an even more divisive President.
Are we doomed to play out the same scenario? Of course things aren’t exactly as they were in the 60s, but I believe the answer is yes if we continue to get our candidates from opposite poles of the electorate.
The concern here is that Dem & GOP leaders fail to see this, and yet each can unilaterally avoid it. Both parties need to be less concerned about their “base” and concentrate on grabbing people in the middle. Yes, a lot was made this election about “turning out the base,” but let’s be real. EVERYONE turned out: base voters, independent voters, fringe voters…anyone and everyone who was actually inclined to vote did so. If the Dems had been able to grab the middle they would have wiped out Bush, no matter how many right-wingers got out to vote Republican.
The challenge is on us as well to ensure that we let our local party leaders know that we need politicians that represent the majority of the country, not its loud-mouthed fringes. If we fail, we run a grave risk of internal upheaval that, just like 40 years ago, no one saw coming and no one knew what to do when it did indeed rear its ugly head.
P.S. If you're on the political fringe, get over your bad self and recognize that retaining or finding your political voice rests with being able to claim the middle first.
Tuesday, November 09, 2004
IT'S 1964 ALL OVER AGAIN
It has dawned on me. Maybe everyone else has figured it out, and I’m a bit slow. But it has dawned on me why the country continues to shift rightward; the reason why liberals are scratching their heads today, still trying to come up with ridiculous reasons why they lost.
There are no moderates at the helm of the Democratic Party.
For crying out loud, Howard Dean is bidding to chair the DNC…and it appears he's being taken seriously. For those of you who are so far left that you can’t see the forest for the trees, this would be like Pat Buchanan becoming the RNC chair.
I grew up a Democrat, a party that used to stand up for the little guy. Then, the party was about correcting injustices in the system, such as racism and antitrust legislation. The Dems stood for exposing abuses of power, whether political or social, and keeping the playing field level for the common person. They voiced a clear vision of what was right and wrong in the world, and how they saw to correct it.
But not any more. Now the Dems are best embodied by their congressional leader, Nancy Pelosi. This is a party that has no clear direction other than opposition, that paints Republicans and those who vote for them stupid...and then actually tries to prove it. This is a party that represents people on the fringe but will ignore those in the center. This is a party that accepts defeat with the grace of a 2-year old, and instead of turning the mirror inward looks for spurious reasons why its candidates continue to lose. In 2000, it was a “stolen” election. In 2002 it was "knee-jerk voting." This time, it’s “stupid, dangerous Christians.” What’s it going to be next time, “stupid dangerous knee-jerk Christians that prefer red,” so they vote Republican?
Here’s the real problem, Party of My Youth: you are putting up lousy national candidates that don’t represent anyone outside of San Francisco, Hollywood, New York, and disenfranchised inner cities. Look at the county-by-county map of how the country voted. Your candidates are getting shelled. Quit patting yourselves on the back about how smart you are and how stupid everyone else is, and educate yourselves about what is really happening in the rest of the country. Maybe (gasp) visit the Midwest. Or Atlanta. Or if you have to leave the safe, fake-world reality of Liberal-Land in baby steps, head to Austin.
Barry Goldwater, who would be considered a moderate Republican today, could not win in 1964 when the country was leaning extremely left. Hear me well, my fellow Democrats: John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, Nancy Pelosi, John Edwards and Howard Dean cannot win in today’s environment, nor can anyone that looks and sounds like them. If you do not put up a centrist candidate, you will continue to get the living crap beat out of you.
Turn the mirror on yourselves for once.
There are no moderates at the helm of the Democratic Party.
For crying out loud, Howard Dean is bidding to chair the DNC…and it appears he's being taken seriously. For those of you who are so far left that you can’t see the forest for the trees, this would be like Pat Buchanan becoming the RNC chair.
I grew up a Democrat, a party that used to stand up for the little guy. Then, the party was about correcting injustices in the system, such as racism and antitrust legislation. The Dems stood for exposing abuses of power, whether political or social, and keeping the playing field level for the common person. They voiced a clear vision of what was right and wrong in the world, and how they saw to correct it.
But not any more. Now the Dems are best embodied by their congressional leader, Nancy Pelosi. This is a party that has no clear direction other than opposition, that paints Republicans and those who vote for them stupid...and then actually tries to prove it. This is a party that represents people on the fringe but will ignore those in the center. This is a party that accepts defeat with the grace of a 2-year old, and instead of turning the mirror inward looks for spurious reasons why its candidates continue to lose. In 2000, it was a “stolen” election. In 2002 it was "knee-jerk voting." This time, it’s “stupid, dangerous Christians.” What’s it going to be next time, “stupid dangerous knee-jerk Christians that prefer red,” so they vote Republican?
Here’s the real problem, Party of My Youth: you are putting up lousy national candidates that don’t represent anyone outside of San Francisco, Hollywood, New York, and disenfranchised inner cities. Look at the county-by-county map of how the country voted. Your candidates are getting shelled. Quit patting yourselves on the back about how smart you are and how stupid everyone else is, and educate yourselves about what is really happening in the rest of the country. Maybe (gasp) visit the Midwest. Or Atlanta. Or if you have to leave the safe, fake-world reality of Liberal-Land in baby steps, head to Austin.
Barry Goldwater, who would be considered a moderate Republican today, could not win in 1964 when the country was leaning extremely left. Hear me well, my fellow Democrats: John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, Nancy Pelosi, John Edwards and Howard Dean cannot win in today’s environment, nor can anyone that looks and sounds like them. If you do not put up a centrist candidate, you will continue to get the living crap beat out of you.
Turn the mirror on yourselves for once.
Thursday, November 04, 2004
POST-ELECTION ANGER/OBSERVATIONS
48 hours after the general election, I have a few observations. I am warning the wary that this is possibly the angriest column I will ever write, but there are some things I have to publicly get off my chest because I'm listening to coastal liberals telling me why I voted the way I did. And they just don't get it:
-BIG MEDIA IS NO LONGER TRUSTWORTHY
Reporting that the exit polls showed a Kerry victory??? At 6:01pm??? Not only were they wrong, the major news organizations (other than Fox) exposed themselves yet again: They Are Not Objective!! Come on people, they so wanted to either a) believe that Kerry would win or b) influence the Central through Mountain time zone states into not voting if you were for Bush (because it was over) or insuring you’d vote if you were for Kerry (to make sure that he won). No other way to say it: that’s horse shit. Shame on NBC, shame on CBS (doubly), shame on ABC, and shame, shame, shame on CNN. I hope you all get your just rewards for hijacking a once-proud institution.
Consider this: the major news organizations were talking about how South Carolina, West Virgina and Virginia were too close to call, even though every single poll for weeks had showed them strongly in the Bush camp. The final results? Bush wins Virginia by 9%, West Virginia by 13% and North Carolina by 13%. These races were never, ever, ever in doubt, and it’s disgraceful that B.M purposely spun them as such.
At 10:00 Eastern Time I could tell that Ohio was Bush’s, yet no network would call it or even paint a grim picture for Kerry like they did with the states above for Bush. Why was it obvious? Because Cuyahoga County (Cleveland) was 80% in, with Kerry winning 65%-35%...and that’s the single most Democratic county in Ohio. Also, at that time, Bush already had a 90,000 vote lead, and they hadn’t even gotten 30% of the returns from Hamilton County (Cincinnati), the most Republican area of the state. It was obviously over, yet the networks wouldn’t call it. Some didn’t call it until Wednesday, even after Bush’s lead grew to over 130,000. So…you think there’s an obvious bias there? Do you think that B.M. is going to win any fans? Make any new Democrats? Give me a break; this makes me more Republican than ever, even if it’s just to spit in the face of so-called journalists.
-THE DEMOCRATS DON’T GET IT
How disappointing is it to someone like myself that the Democrats put up a pansy-ass blueblood liberal with not a political conviction in his body, who chooses a disingenuous, economically ruinous running mate because he might be glib? At the federal level, Republicans are running dangerously to the right, which makes them ripe for being picked off. But the Democrats inexplicably think that the best response is to yell louder from the opposite corner.
How could a party who had success with a centrist President in Bill Clinton so quickly revert to the formula that brought us Walter Mondale, Lyndon Johnson and Michael Dukakis is mystifying. This is the party that skewered Bush Sr. for being out of touch with real lives. So their answer is John Kerry? Vietnam-bashing, sushi-eating, French-speaking, ultra-millionaire, ultra-liberal Kerry? Who brings along an ambulance-chasing used-car salesman for a running mate?
And they wonder how they lost Ohio.
-LOTS OF COMPLAINERS, BUT NO DOERS
Those who think that George W. Bush didn’t deserve a return to office have a point. Yet how many of them are involved in their local political scene? Can they even name their state representative and senators? Not their congressperson or U.S. Senators, but the state and local folks. How many of the complainers are politically involved on any level other than voting once in a while? How many don’t even bother to vote in the primaries, much less know what they're voting for in their local officials?
The local level is not only the place where people affect your daily life, it’s where the candidates get chosen from. It’s Precinct Committemen/women, ward chairs and state representatives. No, they don’t decide who to choose for President, but they do decide who to choose for governor, U.S. Senate, and the U.S. House, which are the only places that Presidential candidates realistically come from. So if you don’t like your choices, you might want to start paying attention to local races and actually electing people who not only are there when you actually need a politician, but who will choose who runs this country.
IT’S NOT RELIGION
I live in the “God-Fearing Vast Wilderness of the Midwest,” which is what the coastal liberals seem to believe is everything between East Orange, NJ and Las Vegas. Well guess what? I’m hobnobbing with the local hayseed Indiana pols, who have spouted all sorts of reasons they either hate John Kerry or love George Bush. You know what? Not a single one has ever brought up a religious or moral reason for why they’re vote is going in a certain direction. Oh, there have been plenty who talked about Clinton as amoral, but not a single one who has ever mentioned voting for Bush because they like his religious stance, or won’t vote for the Democrats because they hate the prospect of gay marriage, or think that Kerry is untrustworthy because he’s divorced, Catholic, or any other religious reason. Their reasons for voting the way they did are usually partisan and political, and some are downright simplistic and even ill-thought out, but they’re not religious.
One final note: for 44 years every elected President, regardless of party, has come from Texas, Arkansas, Georgia or southern California. (I’m leaving Ford out because he was not elected). And since the 2 from California were both Republicans, this means Orange County and San Diego, not Hollywood.
The northeast may want to believe it’s still the center of the universe, but the rest of the nation doesn’t buy it. Democrats, it’s pretty simple: give the voters a candidate with an actual stance who hails from someplace other than the Corridor, and you will probably win. But all you have to do is look at that red & blue map. If you put up Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden, you're going to get soundly defeated. And you'll be scratching your heads in 2008 looking for other spurious reasons as to why you can't reach the majority of Americans.
-BIG MEDIA IS NO LONGER TRUSTWORTHY
Reporting that the exit polls showed a Kerry victory??? At 6:01pm??? Not only were they wrong, the major news organizations (other than Fox) exposed themselves yet again: They Are Not Objective!! Come on people, they so wanted to either a) believe that Kerry would win or b) influence the Central through Mountain time zone states into not voting if you were for Bush (because it was over) or insuring you’d vote if you were for Kerry (to make sure that he won). No other way to say it: that’s horse shit. Shame on NBC, shame on CBS (doubly), shame on ABC, and shame, shame, shame on CNN. I hope you all get your just rewards for hijacking a once-proud institution.
Consider this: the major news organizations were talking about how South Carolina, West Virgina and Virginia were too close to call, even though every single poll for weeks had showed them strongly in the Bush camp. The final results? Bush wins Virginia by 9%, West Virginia by 13% and North Carolina by 13%. These races were never, ever, ever in doubt, and it’s disgraceful that B.M purposely spun them as such.
At 10:00 Eastern Time I could tell that Ohio was Bush’s, yet no network would call it or even paint a grim picture for Kerry like they did with the states above for Bush. Why was it obvious? Because Cuyahoga County (Cleveland) was 80% in, with Kerry winning 65%-35%...and that’s the single most Democratic county in Ohio. Also, at that time, Bush already had a 90,000 vote lead, and they hadn’t even gotten 30% of the returns from Hamilton County (Cincinnati), the most Republican area of the state. It was obviously over, yet the networks wouldn’t call it. Some didn’t call it until Wednesday, even after Bush’s lead grew to over 130,000. So…you think there’s an obvious bias there? Do you think that B.M. is going to win any fans? Make any new Democrats? Give me a break; this makes me more Republican than ever, even if it’s just to spit in the face of so-called journalists.
-THE DEMOCRATS DON’T GET IT
How disappointing is it to someone like myself that the Democrats put up a pansy-ass blueblood liberal with not a political conviction in his body, who chooses a disingenuous, economically ruinous running mate because he might be glib? At the federal level, Republicans are running dangerously to the right, which makes them ripe for being picked off. But the Democrats inexplicably think that the best response is to yell louder from the opposite corner.
How could a party who had success with a centrist President in Bill Clinton so quickly revert to the formula that brought us Walter Mondale, Lyndon Johnson and Michael Dukakis is mystifying. This is the party that skewered Bush Sr. for being out of touch with real lives. So their answer is John Kerry? Vietnam-bashing, sushi-eating, French-speaking, ultra-millionaire, ultra-liberal Kerry? Who brings along an ambulance-chasing used-car salesman for a running mate?
And they wonder how they lost Ohio.
-LOTS OF COMPLAINERS, BUT NO DOERS
Those who think that George W. Bush didn’t deserve a return to office have a point. Yet how many of them are involved in their local political scene? Can they even name their state representative and senators? Not their congressperson or U.S. Senators, but the state and local folks. How many of the complainers are politically involved on any level other than voting once in a while? How many don’t even bother to vote in the primaries, much less know what they're voting for in their local officials?
The local level is not only the place where people affect your daily life, it’s where the candidates get chosen from. It’s Precinct Committemen/women, ward chairs and state representatives. No, they don’t decide who to choose for President, but they do decide who to choose for governor, U.S. Senate, and the U.S. House, which are the only places that Presidential candidates realistically come from. So if you don’t like your choices, you might want to start paying attention to local races and actually electing people who not only are there when you actually need a politician, but who will choose who runs this country.
IT’S NOT RELIGION
I live in the “God-Fearing Vast Wilderness of the Midwest,” which is what the coastal liberals seem to believe is everything between East Orange, NJ and Las Vegas. Well guess what? I’m hobnobbing with the local hayseed Indiana pols, who have spouted all sorts of reasons they either hate John Kerry or love George Bush. You know what? Not a single one has ever brought up a religious or moral reason for why they’re vote is going in a certain direction. Oh, there have been plenty who talked about Clinton as amoral, but not a single one who has ever mentioned voting for Bush because they like his religious stance, or won’t vote for the Democrats because they hate the prospect of gay marriage, or think that Kerry is untrustworthy because he’s divorced, Catholic, or any other religious reason. Their reasons for voting the way they did are usually partisan and political, and some are downright simplistic and even ill-thought out, but they’re not religious.
One final note: for 44 years every elected President, regardless of party, has come from Texas, Arkansas, Georgia or southern California. (I’m leaving Ford out because he was not elected). And since the 2 from California were both Republicans, this means Orange County and San Diego, not Hollywood.
The northeast may want to believe it’s still the center of the universe, but the rest of the nation doesn’t buy it. Democrats, it’s pretty simple: give the voters a candidate with an actual stance who hails from someplace other than the Corridor, and you will probably win. But all you have to do is look at that red & blue map. If you put up Hillary Clinton or Joe Biden, you're going to get soundly defeated. And you'll be scratching your heads in 2008 looking for other spurious reasons as to why you can't reach the majority of Americans.
Wednesday, November 03, 2004
GLOAT, GLOAT, GLOAT, GLOAT
How could I predict more correctly?
-The youth vote: non-existent. Unless you think that 17% of registered voters 18-30 turning out is significant. Which Jehme Kwausfoeuo1ruroeu, or whatever the leader's name of "Rock the Vote" is, apparently believes. That's fine, keep investing your time and justifying your existence. And while you're at it, why don't you make your fortune in the lottery, since that's equally likely?
-Say it with me: which state was down to the wire in deciding the election? A hint: it's round on both sides and high in the middle....
-Despite the ridiculous media hype at the beginning of yesterday evening, were there any surprises in where the states fell? Noooooooo.
-Uh...where is New Hampshire? 24 hours after the polls closed it's too close to call. See last blog posting.
As I gloat on my predictions (which I am, at least today), why was I able to be successful? Luck? Stupid coincidence? Knowing that the Redskins now play in Maryland, not D.C.? I think it's because I listen less to spin and actually read, watch and digest a bunch of different info from a wide array of sources. I don't just listen to what I wish to believe or sources that tell me what I want to hear. And some of that are the people that read this blog.
As promised, what occurred while I worked the polls in Middle Earth (Indiana) yesterday:
4:10 The alarm goes off. Part of my brain is excited. A larger part simply says “crap.”
5:00 The Precinct Inspector, the Republican Judge and Republican Clerk were already there. We start setting up the books, turning on the voting machines and generally getting ready.
5:43 The first voter shows up, well ahead of the opening of the polls. He makes it clear that he wants to be first to vote. Only 3-4 minutes later, a line starts forming behind him. The Inspector says this is normal.
6:00 The polls open on time and the line stretches 50 feet into the lobby. The inspector now says that's unusual. I make the mistake of passing out flyers to an already assembled crowd. It’s apparent that these people don’t need help. Not knowing what else to do, I pass out flyers until I run out and vow that I won’t be doing that again for a while.
6:15 Even though it’s raining, the line stretches all the way outside. Now the Inspector acknowledges that’s abnormally heavy. This could be interesting.
6:20 An African-American woman comes up to me to question whether I was able to be passing out flyers. I show her evidence that I was within the rules and assure her that I am very sensitive to the rules. She seems to believe me. Nonetheless, note to self…don’t pass out flyers. It makes me uncomfortable in the first place, I'm not a "true believer," and I'd rather not be partisan.
6:25 The Democratic Clerk finally shows up, allowing the Democratic Judge to quit working the poll book and actually do her regular job of observing. It’s good to note that people on both sides know each other and are friendly, even though they’re working for opposite parties. The Centrist Dude’s heart is filled with hope.
6:35 My Ward Chairman, who is also running for Township Board, stops by to say hello.
7:12 The lines are still streaming out the door. People are already asking “what if it’s 6pm and you’re in line to vote?” Someone observes that they’re voting at about 100 people an hour (they may have been in line that long, I suppose). Yikes...that’s only 1200 people in a 1400 people district. Hope they don’t all show up late.
8:05 The official machine counts show that 194 people have voted. There have been 2 people who wanted to vote that weren’t in the poll book. The 2nd one is a local on-air reporter from Channel 6, Doug Harvey, who appears to be wanting trouble. I have found out that he reported from here after the primaries because this was one of the districts (of many) that ran out of ballots. Today, he didn’t want to wait for his problem to be resolved, instead leaving in a huff to call Doris Ann Sadler, the Marion County Secretary. My take is that he is purposely angling for a story to report on how “disorganized” the election is being run. What an ass.
9:20 The Democratic Judge asks if we can set up more voting booths. I set a couple up to move the total number of booths up to 8.
8:35 I call my Ward Chairman to explain what transpired with the TV reporter. He calls back later to say that everything was taken care of. Apparently he was able to diffuse the problem at the Election Board by alerting them to what really happened. Good.
9:02 I get a machine vote count; we pulled 130 last hour, so the extra booths are speeding things up. A weirdo phenomenon: this district has way, way more people with A-M than N-Z. This is a problem, because the poll books are alphabetically broken down this way, and the lines are really long for A-M.
10:00 120 votes processed last hour. A quick count of this district shows 1482 registered voters, so over a quarter have already voted. There have been 3 people turned away for not being in the poll book, and 1 person who wasn’t in the book but proved his eligibility to vote.
10:30 The line continues to extend outside. Amazing.
10:40 I happen to be outside as Mitch Daniel’s RV pulls up. (Mitch is running for governor of Indiana against incumbent Democrat Joe Kernan). I get to at least introduce myself & shake his hand. He’s got this Southern Indiana lilt he’s picked up while campaigning. I’ll be curious to see how long it lasts if he’s elected.
10:46 The absentee ballots arrive. There are 92 in one stack, 4 in one, 41 in another, and one by itself.
11:00 A total of 557 have voted, plus the 138 absentees for a total of 695 (barring duplications in the absentees).
12:05 It’s slowed down enough for the Centrist Dude to leave, pick up the Conservative Wife and vote in our district.
12:50 Coming back, things have actually slowed down. Maybe the clerks & inspector can actually get some of the absentee ballots caught up so that we’re not here until 8:00.
1:30 By comparison, things have really slowed down. Of course, since over 60% of the district has voted it can only be so heavy from here on out, at least until that expected final rush.
3:00 Voting machine tally is 863. With absentees we’re at 1001.
4:00 The tallies keep climbing; machines are now at 948. The final rush should start sometime in this hour. The good news is that the inspector & the clerks are getting the absentee ballots sorted & ready to tally.
5:12 The inspector & I have finished putting all the absentee ballots through the machines. Two provisional ballots were accidentally sent to us and 2 ballots were improperly marked so the machine can’t read them, but are pretty obvious as to what the votes were meant to be. Not my department to deal with. We’re now at a total of 1160 out of approximately 1480 registered district voters. We may not have a late rush at all.
If the absentees are any indicator, Evan Bayh and Mitch Daniels are both going to win handily. Evan’s no surprise, and I expect Daniels to win, but there are a surprising number of otherwise straight Democratic voters who are splitting their ticket for Daniels.
5:50 Miraculously, there is no one late; they have all come here early. We’re already more than halfway broken down.
7:10 Leaving to go pick up the C.W., who is already spelling gloom & doom for Bush because she’s listening to the NBC reporters. Apparently they’re rubbing their hands in glee over the downtrodden people in the Bush camp and calling this for Kerry. I am unconvinced.
7:40 forward - We go to the "victory party," which turns out to actually be somewhat victorious, mostly because Mitch Daniels wins by a fairly substantial margin. As I suspected, the presidential race is not breaking down the way the media wants it to, but is instead breaking the way the Centrist Dude saw it in the first place. We left to come home & watch the rest of the returns some time ago. Around 11:30 I could see that Bush is going to win: he's taken Florida and is going to take Ohio, although no one wants to admit it. We'll get up tomorrow & see how things have shaken out. Hopefully, Kerry isn't stupid enough to drag this out legally for a battle he'll end up losing anyway.
The Liberal New Hampshire Uncle owes me a 6-pack.
-The youth vote: non-existent. Unless you think that 17% of registered voters 18-30 turning out is significant. Which Jehme Kwausfoeuo1ruroeu, or whatever the leader's name of "Rock the Vote" is, apparently believes. That's fine, keep investing your time and justifying your existence. And while you're at it, why don't you make your fortune in the lottery, since that's equally likely?
-Say it with me: which state was down to the wire in deciding the election? A hint: it's round on both sides and high in the middle....
-Despite the ridiculous media hype at the beginning of yesterday evening, were there any surprises in where the states fell? Noooooooo.
-Uh...where is New Hampshire? 24 hours after the polls closed it's too close to call. See last blog posting.
As I gloat on my predictions (which I am, at least today), why was I able to be successful? Luck? Stupid coincidence? Knowing that the Redskins now play in Maryland, not D.C.? I think it's because I listen less to spin and actually read, watch and digest a bunch of different info from a wide array of sources. I don't just listen to what I wish to believe or sources that tell me what I want to hear. And some of that are the people that read this blog.
As promised, what occurred while I worked the polls in Middle Earth (Indiana) yesterday:
4:10 The alarm goes off. Part of my brain is excited. A larger part simply says “crap.”
5:00 The Precinct Inspector, the Republican Judge and Republican Clerk were already there. We start setting up the books, turning on the voting machines and generally getting ready.
5:43 The first voter shows up, well ahead of the opening of the polls. He makes it clear that he wants to be first to vote. Only 3-4 minutes later, a line starts forming behind him. The Inspector says this is normal.
6:00 The polls open on time and the line stretches 50 feet into the lobby. The inspector now says that's unusual. I make the mistake of passing out flyers to an already assembled crowd. It’s apparent that these people don’t need help. Not knowing what else to do, I pass out flyers until I run out and vow that I won’t be doing that again for a while.
6:15 Even though it’s raining, the line stretches all the way outside. Now the Inspector acknowledges that’s abnormally heavy. This could be interesting.
6:20 An African-American woman comes up to me to question whether I was able to be passing out flyers. I show her evidence that I was within the rules and assure her that I am very sensitive to the rules. She seems to believe me. Nonetheless, note to self…don’t pass out flyers. It makes me uncomfortable in the first place, I'm not a "true believer," and I'd rather not be partisan.
6:25 The Democratic Clerk finally shows up, allowing the Democratic Judge to quit working the poll book and actually do her regular job of observing. It’s good to note that people on both sides know each other and are friendly, even though they’re working for opposite parties. The Centrist Dude’s heart is filled with hope.
6:35 My Ward Chairman, who is also running for Township Board, stops by to say hello.
7:12 The lines are still streaming out the door. People are already asking “what if it’s 6pm and you’re in line to vote?” Someone observes that they’re voting at about 100 people an hour (they may have been in line that long, I suppose). Yikes...that’s only 1200 people in a 1400 people district. Hope they don’t all show up late.
8:05 The official machine counts show that 194 people have voted. There have been 2 people who wanted to vote that weren’t in the poll book. The 2nd one is a local on-air reporter from Channel 6, Doug Harvey, who appears to be wanting trouble. I have found out that he reported from here after the primaries because this was one of the districts (of many) that ran out of ballots. Today, he didn’t want to wait for his problem to be resolved, instead leaving in a huff to call Doris Ann Sadler, the Marion County Secretary. My take is that he is purposely angling for a story to report on how “disorganized” the election is being run. What an ass.
9:20 The Democratic Judge asks if we can set up more voting booths. I set a couple up to move the total number of booths up to 8.
8:35 I call my Ward Chairman to explain what transpired with the TV reporter. He calls back later to say that everything was taken care of. Apparently he was able to diffuse the problem at the Election Board by alerting them to what really happened. Good.
9:02 I get a machine vote count; we pulled 130 last hour, so the extra booths are speeding things up. A weirdo phenomenon: this district has way, way more people with A-M than N-Z. This is a problem, because the poll books are alphabetically broken down this way, and the lines are really long for A-M.
10:00 120 votes processed last hour. A quick count of this district shows 1482 registered voters, so over a quarter have already voted. There have been 3 people turned away for not being in the poll book, and 1 person who wasn’t in the book but proved his eligibility to vote.
10:30 The line continues to extend outside. Amazing.
10:40 I happen to be outside as Mitch Daniel’s RV pulls up. (Mitch is running for governor of Indiana against incumbent Democrat Joe Kernan). I get to at least introduce myself & shake his hand. He’s got this Southern Indiana lilt he’s picked up while campaigning. I’ll be curious to see how long it lasts if he’s elected.
10:46 The absentee ballots arrive. There are 92 in one stack, 4 in one, 41 in another, and one by itself.
11:00 A total of 557 have voted, plus the 138 absentees for a total of 695 (barring duplications in the absentees).
12:05 It’s slowed down enough for the Centrist Dude to leave, pick up the Conservative Wife and vote in our district.
12:50 Coming back, things have actually slowed down. Maybe the clerks & inspector can actually get some of the absentee ballots caught up so that we’re not here until 8:00.
1:30 By comparison, things have really slowed down. Of course, since over 60% of the district has voted it can only be so heavy from here on out, at least until that expected final rush.
3:00 Voting machine tally is 863. With absentees we’re at 1001.
4:00 The tallies keep climbing; machines are now at 948. The final rush should start sometime in this hour. The good news is that the inspector & the clerks are getting the absentee ballots sorted & ready to tally.
5:12 The inspector & I have finished putting all the absentee ballots through the machines. Two provisional ballots were accidentally sent to us and 2 ballots were improperly marked so the machine can’t read them, but are pretty obvious as to what the votes were meant to be. Not my department to deal with. We’re now at a total of 1160 out of approximately 1480 registered district voters. We may not have a late rush at all.
If the absentees are any indicator, Evan Bayh and Mitch Daniels are both going to win handily. Evan’s no surprise, and I expect Daniels to win, but there are a surprising number of otherwise straight Democratic voters who are splitting their ticket for Daniels.
5:50 Miraculously, there is no one late; they have all come here early. We’re already more than halfway broken down.
7:10 Leaving to go pick up the C.W., who is already spelling gloom & doom for Bush because she’s listening to the NBC reporters. Apparently they’re rubbing their hands in glee over the downtrodden people in the Bush camp and calling this for Kerry. I am unconvinced.
7:40 forward - We go to the "victory party," which turns out to actually be somewhat victorious, mostly because Mitch Daniels wins by a fairly substantial margin. As I suspected, the presidential race is not breaking down the way the media wants it to, but is instead breaking the way the Centrist Dude saw it in the first place. We left to come home & watch the rest of the returns some time ago. Around 11:30 I could see that Bush is going to win: he's taken Florida and is going to take Ohio, although no one wants to admit it. We'll get up tomorrow & see how things have shaken out. Hopefully, Kerry isn't stupid enough to drag this out legally for a battle he'll end up losing anyway.
The Liberal New Hampshire Uncle owes me a 6-pack.
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