Month: October 2020

There’s a bully on our playground.

He claims to be a leader, but where he lacks leadership qualities, he compensates by bullying.

He doesn’t just tell lies about easily researched facts, such as mail-in voting and election fraud, but he lies about statements he has made, despite his every public and many private moments being documented. This bully lacks integrity.

An empty playground on a fall morning

He fails to focus on serious topics affecting our country, most notably the pandemic. Unable to focus on the actual issues, he tosses around conspiracy theories and promotes fear in his followers. This bully lacks concentration.

His inability to focus emerges as boredom when faced with the reality of governance. Faced with a difficult negotiation or unsurmountable adversary, he lashes out with negative sound bites or abandons his effort, having never learned that persistence would help him overcome obstacles. This bully lacks perseverance.

In lieu of polite dialogue, he lashes out at anybody who disagrees with him, verbally and physically mocking people. He applies this approach not only to his opposition, but to his subordinates, even those who ardently support him. This bully lacks respect.

The term “rage tweet” should never have cause to be used in conjunction with a leader’s name. Fortunately, it hasn’t… he’s a bully, not a leader. This bully lacks self-control.

The government is not run by one person; it’s run by a team, presumably of highly capable people working together. As frequently said, there is no “I” in team, yet he shows no respect for the people around him. A man who praises only himself, as often as possible, has no concept of appreciating other people’s efforts. This bully lacks humility.

A man handed every opportunity in life has never understood what it means to win, because he hasn’t learned how to lose gracefully. The ability to overcome adversity and become unconquerable is dependent on having faced adversity. This bully lacks an indomitable spirit.

Some of you will recognize the list of qualities; for those that don’t, these are the seven tenets of the World Tang Soo Do Association. They seem like a reasonable set of qualities to expect from somebody who is supposed to represent the entire country.

There is a bully on our playground, and his behavior shames us all.

P.S.: Early voting has started. Remember to vote.

There’s an election coming up, how can I help?

There are many possible ways to help the election process, both before and on the actual election day. One important way to help is signing up to become a poll worker – these are the people who check your voter registration and hand you a paper ballot or a code for computer voting. They’re in for a long day – our local election judges (the title seems to vary) arrive at their polling place at 5am and stay until 7pm, and that’s not even counting the training they do ahead of time.

There are also poll watchers, who watch the election process to make sure nothing inappropriate happens. These are typically appointed by the political parties, and again, need some training to make sure they don’t interfere with the voters. You don’t just show up and watch the polls, you need to make sure you’re not breaking any laws in the process. For example, these are the requirements in Illinois:

Registered to vote in the state; must be affiliated with the political party or organization that appoints him or her; the parties and candidates can each appoint two per precinct; organizations that are concerned with the election and nonpartisan civic organizations can appoint one per precinct provided they register with the elections authority 40 days before the election; there can be no more than two people from nonpartisan civic organizations at a polling place at a given time.

Note in particular that there are limits to how many people from each organization can be at a single location. Some states require poll watchers to wear badges, identifying themselves or their organization (it varies) by name. If you’re volunteering as a poll watcher, make sure you know the local rules.

There are always voter registration drives leading up to an election, assisting new voters in signing up. I recall one of these on my college campus, which is around the time most kids reach voting age. It’s too late in most states to register for this election, so keep this one in mind for the next election cycle.

If there’s a candidate you really like, you can volunteer! If the thought of volunteering for one of the big campaigns – presidential or other federal position – seems overwhelming, find a local candidate that you support. There are phone banks, text messages to send, postcards to address and mail… though from personal experience, I would recommend spreading the postcards out a bit, addressing 60 in one day was a bit painful.

There are also rallies, standing (ideally social distanced and with masks) with other people who have similar political views holding signs and waving at traffic. These signs can be anything from support or opposition to specific candidates, particular issues you’re passionate about, or just encouraging people to vote.

As a random act of kindness, there’s a non-profit that delivers food to the long voting lines. You can report a long line or donate towards their pizza at Pizza to the Polls’s website.

What options did I miss, and what are you doing to help?

P.S.: Early voting has started. Remember to vote.

Voting by mail – the actual voting part

Back in July, I wrote about the ballot application I received and the likelihood (or lack thereof) of increased incidents of voter fraud due to an increase in mail-in ballots. Having received and returned my ballot, I stand by my assessment that mail-in ballots are unlikely to result in extensive voter fraud.

This is my first time voting by mail, so I wasn’t sure what to expect with the application or ballot. As I mentioned in my previous post, the ballot application required information about me, the registered voter, that was not included on the application form, decreasing the potential for fraud. The envelope was also marked with “Return Service Requested,” which would result in the application being returned to the sender if I was no longer a valid addressee at this location.

My ballot arrived two days after the first date it could be mailed… not bad for a post office that’s being deliberately sabotaged by a political appointee. I sat on it a couple days, not because I didn’t know where my votes would go, but because I wanted to take the time to read the instructions and extra papers that came with the ballot. I read through the instructions, which were fairly straightforward: darken the square (they were actually rectangles) with a black ink pen, don’t overvote (mark more candidates than votes are allowed for a position), sign & date the envelope provided (presumably after adding the completed ballot to it), and ballots must be postmarked by election day.

I noted the inclusion of an affidavit of hand delivery if I decided to send my ballot with another person to be dropped off, rather than mailed, as well as an affidavit of assisted voter for voters who are unable to complete the ballot themselves due to disabilities or language difficulties. With more than a month to the election, I opted to mail my ballot back in the postage paid envelope, and I don’t need assistance completing it, so I set aside both of these affidavits. Noting also that if I had decided to vote in person, I would need to take my mailed ballot with me or sign an affidavit stating I hadn’t received it; voting multiple times is not allowed.

While the ballot itself is, of course, anonymous, the envelope is trackable: it includes a barcode, several numbers, and my name. I signed up for ballot tracking, so I was notified by e-mail when it was received. I was told it was accepted: the name & barcode allowed officials to compare my signature on the envelope with my voter registration record.

Between the ballot application and the ballot itself, in order to commit extensive voter fraud via mail-in voting, somebody would need the birthdates and signatures for a large number of registered voters and a way to intercept their mail. The possibility of someone (the alleged foreign interference) mass-producing and completing ballots is even less likely, given that ballots typically include everything from federal, state, and local elections – my ballot is not necessarily the same as someone else in the same city because of how district lines are drawn. And even ballot harvesting – collecting other people’s ballots (and potentially completing them) – is unlikely, because it requires a large number of registered voters who are either ignorant of the political process or willing to relinquish their vote to someone else’s control. (That and a political consultant allegedly tried ballot harvesting in the 2018 election… and got caught.)

All in all, the possibilities for mail-in voting fraud are slim, likely to be identifiable, and unlikely to have an impact on this election cycle.

P.S.: Early voting has started. Remember to vote.