Say it ain't so, Johnny
By Sam Garchik
Thanks to the folks at Brave New Films for this...
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Thursday, January 31
Wednesday, January 30
Congress -- Stop dawdling!
by
Sam Garchik
on Wed 30 Jan 2008 05:51 PM CST
Congress -- Stop dawdling!
It's outrageous. We're less than a week away from "Super Tuesday," when 24 states are voting in the first major decision of the 2008 election, and we still do not have an election process we can trust. Become a Citizen Co-Sponsor of the Holt bill! Let's make sure everyone's vote is backed by paper in 2008. That's why I'm hoping you'll become a Citizen Co-Sponsor of the Holt bill immediately, to ensure that any mistakes on "Super Tuesday" February 5th, stop at February 5th. Sign your name to become a Citizen Co-Sponsor of Rep. Holt's bill right now -- before the Super Tuesday deadline! Despite our strong efforts to get Congress to pass verifiable voting, ensuring all states' voting machines are backed up by a paper record, Congress dilly dallied, and did not pass legislation in time for the Super Tuesday primaries – when hundreds of thousands of Americans will be voting for president. We have no choice but to go into February 5th without a secure election process in many states. But, we do have a choice when it comes to the general election on November 4th. We can choose to do everything we can to pass the Holt bill (H.R. 5036, the Emergency Assistance for Secure Elections Act of 2008) before that election. The faster you sign on as a co-sponsor, the quicker the bill will be passed, and the sooner the emergency funding will get to the states. The time to act is right now. Sign your name to become a Citizen Co-Sponsor of Rep. Holt's bill right now – before the February 5th Super Tuesday deadline! Having insecure elections when 24 states go to the polls is inexcusable. Having insecure elections when all 50 states go to the polls is a recipe for disaster. Now is the time to stand up to Congress' dawdling and demand that they pass the Holt bill immediately. Will you join us? Thanks for all you do, Susannah Goodman P.S. Keep an eye on your inbox. We'll soon be sending Common Cause's up-to-the-minute report on the threat level of voting machine malfunction in every state across the country to every Citizen Co-Sponsor of the Holt bill. This is one report I can guarantee you will not want to miss. Tuesday, January 29
Feds HAVA Key to Mauro-Culver Split
by
Sam Garchik
on Tue 29 Jan 2008 01:27 PM CST
Feds HAVA Key to Mauro-Culver SplitBy Jerry Depew, Iowa Voters A new federal bill could resolve the tension between two of Iowa’s top Democrats–the Governor and the Secretary of State. Today’s Register reports that Mauro wants to get all our votes on paper ballots, but Culver is content to buy “paper trails” for the tempermental touchscreens that now infect the state’s polling places. It’s a question of money (big surprise!). The good stuff that Mauro wants costs $10 million. Culver is content to waste $2 million on the widely cussed paper trail printers. They should put their egos aside for a minute and agree on one thing: to call on our state’s Congressmen to support the brand new HR 5036. That new bill by New Jersey’s Rush Holt pays for replacement equipment when states wise up and dump their DRE touchscreens. It is not a mandatory bill, so there is only one point of contention: Do we have the money in the federal budget to mop up the mess HAVA made of voting machines all over the nation. States that are loving their mess don’t have to do a thing. States that are ready to wash up can have the soap paid for by the Congress that caused this problem in the first place. None of Iowa’s Congressmen have signed on to this bill yet. I called Latham’s office in Fort Dodge this morning. Can you do your part? Boswell in Des Moines (toll free) (888) 432-1984 Monday, January 28
Fair Share and Alien Workforce
by
Sam Garchik
on Mon 28 Jan 2008 02:34 PM CST
Fair Share and Alien Workforce
By Jay Culter, Charles City This is Jay Cutler. Charles City, IA. I am a retired high school teacher. I was a member of the negotiating team of Charles City Education Association that negotiated the first Collective Agreement between CCEA and Charles City Board of Education. I support the Fair Share legislation and over the years have grown to believe that Iowa really needs a closed union shop. I doubt if we get that, however I heard a management person not long ago say that he would rather work with than without a contract. The contract keeps both parties more honest. Would there be a possibility to support some kind of help to the service and farm workers from outside the country to work in Iowa and at the same time improve the labor laws so that collective bargaining would be less difficult. The strategy would be make getting workers easier and improve the collective bargaining. If farmers want confinement animal workers then negotiate with labor. If construction contractors want labor then negotiate with labor. Saturday, January 26
Mary Mascher Statehouse News 1-24-08
by
Sam Garchik
on Sat 26 Jan 2008 08:07 AM CST
Mary Mascher Statehouse News 1-24-08
By Mary Mascher With all that was accomplished last year many believed this would be a “do nothing” session. Democrats will not let this happen and are excited about the new initiatives unveiled by the Governor in the State of the State address. We are aggressively pursuing either a state wide smoking ban or a local option bill that allows community controlled smoking. In addition to all we accomplished in education last year, this session we are committed to implementing the model core curriculum state wide for all schools. We are also looking at a renewed emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math curriculum in both our K-12 schools and our institutions of higher education. The interim Health Committee identified ways for all Iowa children to be covered by Hawkeye Program on the federal Medicaid program. These efforts would make Iowa the first state in the nation to have all children covered with a healthcare policy. Sincerely, State Representative Mary Mascher State Capitol Des Moines, IA 50319 Mary.Mascher@legis.state.ia.us legislative desk (515) 242-6445 Friday, January 25
Citizen Group Supports Secretary of State's Proposal for Optical Scan Voting System
by
Sam Garchik
on Fri 25 Jan 2008 08:02 AM CST
Citizen Group Supports Secretary of State's Proposal for Optical Scan Voting System
By IVI A citizen group voiced strong support for Iowa Secretary of State Michael Mauro's request to the Assembly for full funding of a statewide system of optically scanned paper ballots. “Secretary Mauro's proposal is right on track. Voter-marked paper ballots offer the most reliable record of the voter's intent,” said Sean Flaherty, co-chair of Iowans for Voting Integrity. “The ballots are durable, and can be recounted easily by hand.” To comply with Iowa's new law requiring a paper trail voting systems, counties that use touch screen voting machines must either intall ATM-style printers to the machines, which show voters a printout of their choices on a continuous roll, or they can scrap the touch screens and purchase a paper ballot system, in which voters mark individual paper ballots by hand or by using an assistive device for voters with disabilities. The paper ballots are then read by an optical scanner and can be recounted by hand. The ATM-style printers for the touch screens have come under criticism from all sides in recent years. They store votes on a continuous roll, raising voter privacy concerns, and are prone to printer jams, which can cause votes to be lost. Studies have shown that the paper trail printout is not checked by a significant number of voters, and expert security reports from Ohio and California showed that the paper roll is easily damaged either maliciously or by accident. The user-friendliness of touch screens is also questionable. Last year members of Iowans for Voting Integrity did a study of undervotes in the statewide races on the November 2006 ballot, and found that for all the contested statewide races, counties that used only voter-marked paper ballots with optical scan had the lowest undervote, counties that used a mix of paper ballots and touch screens had the second-highest undervote, and counties that used only touch screens at the polling place had the highest undervotes. An undervote is the difference between the number of valid ballots cast in the election, and the number of votes tallied for an office. Undervotes are considered by many voting experts to be the single most reliable measure of a voting system's effectiveness and usability. “When you see the undervote correlate with the equipment in all the contested races, you have a good idea what the best system is,” said Flaherty. After the state gets optical scan equipment, the next step in securing the vote is mandating random hand counted audits after the election to check electronic ballot tallies. Computer scientists who study voting systems have called strongly for routine hand audits. 17 states already plan to do audits of the November 2008 election. “You can't just have the paper; you have to use it for it to matter, “ Flaherty said. Mauro's push for optical scan puts Iowa on the same path as a number of other states. Yesterday, Colorado Governor Bill Ritter announced an agreement with his state's lawmakers to advance legislation requiring a statewide optical scan system by November, and last week Maryland's governor announced funding for a statewide conversion from touch screens to optical scan. Florida plans to convert all polling places to optical scan by November. The cost to convert Iowa to optical scan is estimated to be $9.7 million. “For a first-rate voting system, that is money well spent, “ said Flaherty. Thursday, January 24
Stand Up for Iowa Democrats
by
Sam Garchik
on Thu 24 Jan 2008 04:55 PM CST
Stand Up for Iowa Democrats
By National Stonewall Democrats Dear Democrat, You know that the Iowa Democratic Party was one of the first states in the nation to support the freedom of same-sex couples to marry. Since that time, over a dozen state parties have echoed Iowa's call - with real legislative impact in states such as California, Massachusetts, New York and Oregon. Now, we need you to stand up for Democratic ideals and American values. We need you to stand with Iowa in support of the position of the Iowa Democratic Party. As you know, Governor Culver has made some troubling statements which suggest said that he will block the freedom of same-sex couple to marry in Iowa. We're working with partners in Iowa to put positive pressure to change his mind, but he needs to hear from you. We need you to remind him that Iowa Democrats are here to support Governor Culver so that he can support the freedom of all Iowans to marry. This is what the Iowa Democratic Party Platform clearly says: We support: Equal marital rights for all consenting adults regardless of sexual orientation or gender identification. Please call the Governor's office at: (515) 281-5211 - First, tell the Governor's office that as a Democrat, you respect the process of the Iowa courts. Let them do their work before the legislature steps in. - Second, tell the Governor's office that as a Democrat you support the Iowa Democratic Party platform and the freedom of same-sex couples to marry. This is our chance to help Democrats be Democrats. Please call Governor Culver now. Thank you, Jon Hoadley Executive Director (c) 2008 National Stonewall Democrats. Contributions to National Stonewall Democrats are not deductible for federal income tax purposes. Wednesday, January 23
Vets Say Death Penealty Procedures Are Not OK for Animals
by
Sam Garchik
on Wed 23 Jan 2008 08:54 AM CST
Vets Say Death Penealty Procedures Are Not OK for Animals
By Sam Garchik Some Kentucky veterinarians have testified that lethal injection for people-criminals doesn't even satisfy the minimum standards for humane death for animals. Check out the testimony. |
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