Published: September 29, 2008 11:25 am            

How do Americans vote?

Americans love all that high-tech stuff, love to talk and text during train tragedies and car crashes. But US-ers ain't so pretty-good with social problems, as the philosophical freedom-and-control struggle, whether it be couples or countries. Shall it be regulartory or laissez-faire?

And so goes the foundation stone of free government. Without free and fair elections - there will be no democratic society. Abraham Lincoln's "government of the people, by the people, and for the people requires that people vote to decide who shall lead.

Today's voting system is built on the sand of states' rights and local control; 50 states, 3,141 counties, and 7,800 different election jurisdictions. All separate and unequal. Standards for autos to zoos, but not for voting, the only way for citizens to make the necessary decisions about autos, zoos, and everything else.

The right of citizens ... shall not be denied or abridged ... on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude - 15th Amendment, 1870. Right to vote shall not be denied ... on account of sex. 19th Amendment, 1920. Right to vote not denied by failure to pay poll or any other tax. 24th Amendment, 1964. Right of citizens 18 years of age ... not denied by the U.S. or any state on account of age. America gets it right about Who votes, but How...?

So the world's greatest democracy is the only one in the world that denies voting rights to citizens who have been in prison, 14 states permanently. In 2004, 5.3 million convicted felons could not vote, even though they had paid their debt to society. A world wide survey shows, in national elections since 1945, the U.S. is 139th in voter turn-out.

Incumbency is powerful, in 2004 elections, only seven of 399 incimbents lost. One reason for staying power, redistricting; called gerrymandering. Massachusetts Gov. Gerry signed a bill in 1811, to readjust districts to favor Demos over Federalists, though the Feds polled 2/3 of the district. Painter Gilbert Stuart said, "it's shaped like one, so call the new district a salamander". Editor of a Boston newspaper said no, "call it a 'Gerrymander."

Gov. Gerry, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and one of James Madison's Veeps, never sponsored the redistricting, but has become, thanks to linguistics, a kind of villain in American history. Roughly one-third of all eligible Americans, 64 million people, are not registered to vote. The population of the District of Columbia is denied representation in Congress. A house bill in 2007 failed in the U.S. Senate by three votes.

He-who-has-the-gold syndrome; the Center for Responsive Politics says, in 2006, 407 of 435 contests and 24 of 33 Senate, the winners outspent the losers. One anaylist predicted the 2008 campaigns will cost $5 billion.

The Help America Vote Act of 2002 sought a national standard for voting provisional ballots, paper trail, poll-worker training.

It was not empowered, there was no federal committment, no specific voting machine, that was left to the states. Optical scan machines (ala Oklahoma), with their paper trail are far better than touch screens.

The highly regarded and active League of Women Voters partnered with the National Association of Broadcasters during the 2006 election with television announcements encouraging registration and informed voter participation. In 2006, the League president testified before the U.S. Election Assistance Commission on the success of HAVA.

Greg Palast authored a best-selling 2003 book, "The Best Democracy Money Can Buy." It's still true, McCain or Obama will be elected by voters who view the highly biased television ads - 50 states, 3,141, counties, 7,800 locations, and a "Whatever" type of voting machine.

llinois Gov. Adlai Stevenson, presidential candidate of 1952 and 1956, responded to a supporter's - "every thinking person will vote for you." Adlai, "Ma'am, that's not enough. I need a majority."

John Donne's For Whom The Bell Tolls; "any man's death (failure) diminishes me, because I am involved ... therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee, America!



Cecil Acuff lives in Perkins.

        

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