We need large-scale health care reform and a vigorous bill to get us there. Nibbling around the edges will not do.
To any member of Congress who says, “The votes just aren’t there” for a strong reform bill, we need to note that “The votes just won’t be there” in the next primary or general election if you do not take leadership on getting a strong bill through.
The forces of "do nothing on health care" are hard at work. Now we need to bypass all the posturing and wordplay and make it plain enough that even a member of Congress can understand: we want real health care reform that includes every American.
So many Americans feel we are already free and we have personal liberty. When you compare us with some other nations that would be a reasonable assumption however it is not the level of freedom we had in mind when the Declaration of Independence was crafted, nor our Constitution.
Having to retain a permit to exercise one’s First Amendment right to free speech is opposite of our founding father’s intent. A permit is asking permission from the government to do something. Applying to the government to speak can be denied or unreasonably restricted. This is not freedom.
Here in Florida in order to carry a gun one must obtain permission from the state government even though our Constitution contains the Second Amendment which states, “…the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” Perhaps an argument could be made for those that have proven themselves unable to keep and bear arms responsibly, however shouldn’t the “people” have to prove such irresponsibility first? Lawabidng citizens must run through hoops and pay a fee to protect themselves, their families, and their properties from criminals who are unaffected by unreasonable firearms legislaton. This is not freedom.
When I was young and naive I used to think my personal property was as safe and secure as I made it, however this was and is not accurate. The fact is the government can still find out what, in my opinion, is far too much about you even if you have not been charged with a crime. It used to be innocent until proven guilty but now it has completely fliipped to the point of Americans feeling they are simply subjects of the government. Our Fourth Amendment was to protect us from such a change, however through circumstances that I fail to understand, our Fourth Amendment has been usurped by power-hungry legislators and a court system that is more interested in case law & foreign laws than simply referring back to our own Constitution. Our Constitution is suppose to be the Supreme Law of the Land, but it is not so. Unfortunately, the average American seems more concerned with who wins the next Dancing With the Stars or American Idol competitions than with their government [temporary] success in overriding their inalienable rights. Today a police officer can write his or her own warrent (not presenting it before a judge) to enter your home without any probable cause. This is not freedom.
I could go on and on however it is clear we are not living the free life promised by our founding fathers via the Constitution. Time is long overdue to return true freedom to the American people.
It is time to truly care about who you vote to put in public office. Rather than listen to quick sound bites on the local or national television, take a few extra minutes and review the websites of the candidates to be on your ballot to find the candidate most in line with your values and who will most likely vote in favor of freedom when in office.
When elections are close the most important votes are always the ones that weren't counted and that includes especially all the votes that went to neither of the neck and neck runners, but to other candidates. Which of the top two would they have voted for?
Many folk are seeing the light in the two very tight Senate races. How would Instant Runoff Voting have made a difference? Then there are the controversial high profile appointments in Illinois and New York!
The editor of Denver Forgotten Communities Examiner says, "Instant-runoff voting has been tried in municipalities in the United States. It should be tried in statewide elections. The place to start would be in elections for U.S. Senate vacancies. Take the power away from the Governor to make an appointment and let the people vote in a single election with an instant runoff. We will end up with better senators." You can visit:
http://www.examiner.com/x-1173-Denver-Forgotten-Communities-Examiner~y2009m1d6-We-will-have-better-senators-with-instant-runoff-voting
to find out why he has come around to this opinion.
I have started a group: Obama Supporters for Instant Runoff Voting in Tompkins County, NY. Please feel welcome to visit us, help us, and see how we go about working on it locally.
I wrote this back on November 3rd.
I'm so excited. I voted absentee this morning. I had volunteered for the Obama campaign tomorrow. I had thought I would have time during the day to vote, but they had to do some last minute "reprioritization", so I am now being bused down to a town 30 minutes away for almost the entire voting period to go door to door in a last minute "get out the vote" effort. I got the call on Saturday.
I wrote this elsewhere on November 3. I doubt anyone with an account on this site needed to be urged on. But I hoped to convince even one person on the other site to vote.
I urge every person who is registered to vote to get out there and vote. If you think that your vote does not count, just remember this: It counts every bit as much when you do NOT vote.
Here in Akron Ohio, My Partner and I waited 7 hours to vote, It wasn't even election day and we waited this Long.
Gosh, it is cold! I am just getting used to my surroundings now and taking in the different atmosphere to home and I never realised it would be so cold, even though the sun is piercingly bright. What is causing the problem is the wind, the kind I haven't felt in England for a long time. Now I can see why they call Chicago the Windy City. It's a wind that lashes the unsuspecting body, totally negating the effect of the sun, and if it's coming full frontal, that's quite another experience!
Last night when I had finished my third stint of phone banking, I got talking to someone sitting next to me, a young man called Dan, who couldn't have been more than about 28 years old. We clicked immediately because of our zany sense of humour, easy laughter and irreverent manner, and he kept marvelling at how I was there in the thick of it, though not being an American. But I was not really unique, as I discovered. I met people from Denmark, from the Netherlands (who thought Barack was so 'inspirational') from France and from Italy, who were there every day for many hours each day. Even though the Italian could hardly speak English, he was enjoying his data entry which he did continuously without a murmur. It was pretty motivational to see the level of commitment among all the volunteers, both national and international, regardless of the amount of work they had to do, and it was never-ending. For one person to engender such passion, loyalty, commitment and enthusiasm from across the world, he really had to be very special.
A historic and amazing time in history.
On Nov 4, 2008 we elected Barack Obama. A Mullato Black man from Hawaii. Both parents where not always around. Both parents died young. Grandparents raised him, and his grandmother died the day before he won the biggest election of our life. Against all the odds. He persevered. Believed in himself. Educated himself, and went without. Lived in South Chicago to learn about his community. Never stopped, or gave up. He was the first Black President at Harvard. He is an American. He reached out across racial lines, bridging the gap between the ages. We have now been propelled into the future, and we have now experienced a country just transforming itself. Thank you to all the Americans who voted. Take enormous pride in your actions. We fighted for our positions. We have made our choice. It's now time to come together.
By
Bobbi Miller-Moro
Oh brave new world, that has such people in it.
I wish I was old enough to vote in this election, I have never felt so in touch with a presidential candidate before, never with Bush, or Gore or Kerry, never. In my history class I did a powerpoint presentation on all of the reasons that the world should vote for change, but most of the kids in my class looked at me with blank stares and voiced their opinions about how McCain would be better for our country in its time of need. I actually got into a physical arguement about the issues at hand, and the junior in my class swung at me, missing only by a few centimeters. The principal had to get called in to take this kid away from trying to hit me over who he thinks should win. I have never really been so unhappy about my eighteenth birthday being in December, I wish with every nerve right now that I could represent my country, and who I think would be the change we need. I wish I could represent Barack Obama, my school, my state and my country. Even as I'm sitting here, I can hear my sister in the kitchen, Eleven-years-old, singing Yes We Can. Well, I know the truth, and thruth is, that we really Can
I'm happy that I was able to get out and vote for the Obama/Biden ticket this morning. My polling location is in one of Boston's black neighborhoods, and the poll workers at my site on Townsend Street did a great job.
Voting was a family event, as grandparents, parents, and children wanted to share in this history making process. While in line, I saw elderly people with canes who could barely walk, but they were excited about voting for Barack Obama for President. There were teenagers who were thrilled to be casting thier first vote ever for Barack Obama. Even would-be thugs were waiting in line, and they were excited to display their Barack Obama buttons.
There were so many happy people at my polling site. As long as some of these folks stay excited about participating in the community and our country, Barack's campaign will continue to yield benefits for years and generations to come.
I tried to vote on the last day of early voting in Illinois which was on Thursday. I showed up around 11am and there was an hour long wait. I couldn't wait that long. A poll worker told me to check out another polling place nearby but there was a line out the door there too so I went to work.
I was determined to not have any wait this morning so I got up at 5:15am and went to my polling place. There was already one guy in line! Voting started promptly at 6am and I had no trouble. I went back home to get some more sleep and will be phone-banking later this afternoon. Then off to Grant Park!
Hello all!
I’ve just come from fulfilling my civic duties (and personal responsibility of getting Obama elected) in North Canton, Ohio. I’m writing to let you know that I witnessed a few minor inconveniences at the polls this morning that resulted in a few persons leaving without voting. When I left, I immediately phoned the Voting Rights Institute of the Ohio Secretary of State, Jennifer Brunner and spoke with her assistant regarding the issues. They assured me that they would either phone or send someone out immediately to rectify the situation so that no other persons would have to forfeit their opportunity to vote • at least not for that particular reason.
I am writing to let you know that if you have also experienced or witnessed anything questionable at your polling locations to please make the call to 877-868-3874 so that the issue can be resolved today before the polls close.
You never know in Ohio, it may come down to just these few votes and you may have done your part to ensure Obama’s election! The call only takes a few moments. In addition, you can also log your experience at their website: www.myohiovote.com • please keep in mind that the issues logged here may not be addressed today.
Please forward this message to anyone you know who is voting in Ohio today!
Best,
Jennifer
I awoke early at 5:30am to get ready for the election. Though election day was not a fashion show, I could not show up dawdy looking because if Barack got elected, I could not had told my children that I was in wrinkled garb! Like Sheryl Underwood said on the Tom Joyner Morning Show. Initially I was going to wear my silver turtleneck with matching slacks but after watching the weather report, I changed to wearing my Ann Taylor sweater. Hey I got to put on the good stuff!
Walking to my polling place at 6:58am, there was a line around the corner past M Street, the Union Club and a couple of embassies. Initially I thought that I would be finished by 10am enabling me to still complete all of my daily tasks. Immediately upon my arrival, two more men came and we discussed everything: the election, where we came from and previously voted (I voted in Virginia and Ohio and one man voted in Florida), and debated voter fraud (Though one man asserted that there was fraud on both sides. I disagreed because when Republicans proclaim voter fraud that was a dig towards black people. They feared our high turnout so they said these people were more susceptible to voter fraud!), and the DC metro area (One man exclaimed that though he liked residing in Wisconsin, he was an East Coast dude now. Even with the snow I could not see myself abandoning Cleveland. It was my birthplace and I had not morphed into this big time person enough to move on from it! It was too hard to shelve 28 years of my life over career progress!).
Though I heard many blacks' retelling how emotional it was to cast their ballots for Barack, the spirit did not well up in me because I had been voting for 12 years. Though a viable black presidential candidate was new, exercising my full franchise was not. So I waited in line for thirty-five minutes then a man asked me if my last name was between I and L, I replied yes, he instructed me to head into the church where I verified my address (I took my voter identification card just in case there was a mix-up. www.barackobama.com listed my Virginia address and polling place in its reminder email), took the blue ticket stub and waited in line to vote.
The DC electronic voting process was different than the Ohio and Virginia punch card balloting. I took this huge sheet of paper, penciled in the arrow for the candidate of my choice then waited in another line to feed it into this electronic feeder which read my vote! The elderly woman volunteered shouted at us to stand behind the line. I told the lady in front of me that she was a retired school teacher who commandeered her charges in one single-file line against the lockers!. She called my name and I fed my paper ballot into the electronic voting machine. Exiting the church I was rejuvenated to see the long lines because all of them are voting for Barack Obama.
Entering my apartment building to I talked to the front desk lady about casting my vote. I told her the reason why I finished early was because my last name was Jenkins. She replied that was the shortest line. Her surname started with a B then the lightbulb went off that she had to stand in line with all of the people named Brown and Black. Right after that my apartment I turned on my TV to see CNN and watch Senator Barack Obama cast his ballot!
For the first time, I voted — and I couldn't have asked to believe more fully in my decision, nor to feel more life behind it.
I am unspeakably happy.
As a hispanic Voter i'm Exited about this election.. IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE and Only OBAMA is capable to bring change to our country.. to everyone of us...
I have never before felt to eager to VOTE!! I
Many people in our community feel the same way and Obama has broken so many walls even in church we talk about it, we pray we have hope...
Many people that can NOt cast a vote in this election have felt compelled to also help in any way they can even our youth has taken action by taken the phone maken calls, talk to people in this community. Obamas has empower us to do SOMETHING not to be limited by any sircunstances but to Go out and as Dickens will say: ALLOWED MYSELF TO HOPE AS I NEVER HOPE BEFORE...
