[Sosfbay-discuss] Living in the Post-Election Era and Really Protecting the USA

[Drew Johnson]

http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_rob_kall_071130_living_in_the_post_e.htm
November 30, 2007 at 10:55:41

Living in the Post-Election Era and Really Protecting the USA

by Rob Kall

I look at the news of elections coming in Pakistan, Russia, votes on
constitutional changes in Venezuela... and I think of the USA's last two
flawed presidential selection events... and I wonder, "have we entered the
era where elections WERE??

Have elections become a joke, a sham, a ploy used by people and groups
with great power to steal the ultimate power-- of leadership of a nation?

Have we entered a "post-election-era" when elections that people trusted
and believed were an integral part of democracy have become a thing of the
past, perhaps even a mythic concept now questioned as to whether they ever
really existed.

We look at any of the above elections and how can we not wonder whether
they will be manipulated or fixed? Who will benefit? Putin, Musharaf,
Chavez!!

It is a sad travesty of justice that here in the USA, after two flawed,
corruption marred and influenced elections, the elected representatives in
congress have failed to PASS legislation which changes the rules so
elections in the US can be trusted. Even when one well-intentioned
legislator, Russ Holt, tried, his legislation was corrupted and ruined by
an either incompetent or corrupted aide, who allowed corporations to
re-write Holt's initial draft so it was made worse than current, existing
law.

There are voting integrity and election reform activists all over America.
They are working hard, with passion and integrity at local and national
levels. But still, we face the situation today, where three international
elections are greatly suspect. And it is impossible not to at least
partially blame the US-- the seat of modern democracy-- for failing to
clean up its own act.

The USA's failure-- the congress's failure-- to enact tough, clear
legislation that requires paper ballot records that are the only record
used for recounting is a huge failure that is letting down democracies all
across the planet.

There's a senate bill floating around, by Diane Feinstein, that's even
worse than Holt's unacceptably flawed bill. And sadly, selling out
democracy and the American people, People for the American Way and
moveon.org have, settled for far too little, having supported the Holt
bill. Shame on them both. That bill would allow a president to appoint an
election commission, without congressional authorization, that would be
the final arbiter of elections. That's like inviting Bush to appoint Rove,
Cheney, Scalia and Scooter Libby to "impartially" decide election
disputes. Is "disgusting" too kind a word?

We're soon going to be seeing, here in the USA, primary elections. Who's
to say that these can not and will not be tampered with, as it has been
proven it is so easy to do?

The threat to democracy we face in the USA has travelled around the world.
If the US were to install solid, tamper-proof, trustworthy laws and
policies for federal elections, these could be quickly cloned all over the
world, as the gold standard.

Instead, we see questionable, untrustworthy processes that leave all the
elections in the world in doubt.

It is time for the US congress to get tough with election standards, to
stop settling for less, to refuse to accept privatization of the election
process-- a process at the marrow core of democracy. It is not too late
for congress to pass legislation that requires, that for federal
elections-- for US senators, congresspeople and president, that only paper
ballots be counted and kept as the official record for recounts-- Period!!
No exceptions!!

This could still be done in time for the first elections in the first
primaries. The congress should do it. Failure to do so should be recorded
in history along with all the other failures of this pathetic 110th
congress. It is sad that a Democrat led congress could go down in history
as being the one that failed on Iraq, failed on protecting the
constitution by failing to impeach Cheney and Bush, failed on protecting
our troops by allowing them to be kept in Iraq by corporation motivated
right wing globalist neocons and they failed to do enough, in so many
ways, to protect Americans and the American economy from hemmorhaging,
perhaps mortally.

We need to let the members of congress know that they do not get to run
again, as incumbents, if they fail to do their job, protecting the
constitution, protecting democracy, protecting our jobs, our troops, our
economy.

The Right wing talks about protecting us from terrorists while all the
time, holding the back doors wide open to allow invaders and attackers in
so many other forms to just sweep in, destroying so many parts and aspects
of the USA that we hold sacred. These traitors MUST be exposed and the
truth laid bare. It is not too late for this congress to do what must be
done on all the fronts I've described. But it must happen VERY soon.



Rob Kall is executive editor and publisher of OpEdNews.com, President of
Futurehealth, Inc, inventor  and organizer of several conferences,
including StoryCon, the Summit Meeting on the Art, Science and Application
of Story and The Winter Brain Meeting on neurofeedback, biofeedback,
Optimal Functioning and Positive Psychology. He is a frequent Speaker on
Politics, The art, science and power of story, heroes and the hero's
journey, Positive Psychology, Stress, Biofeedback and a wide range of
subjects. See more of his articles here and, older ones, here.