General Election GDT 11/04/2008

[Big Boy Laroux]

Are we going to have a separate post-game-day thread?

[Mavdog]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

So people who voted in Dallas county, how did you vote for the Parkland hospital thing?

yeah, the existing building is not very efficient. it is an investment in the medical district as much as anything.

[fluid.forty.one]

I voted like a week ago (obama)

[92bDad]

Regardless of Background, Beliefs or views...GO VOTE!!!

[fluid.forty.one]

don't forget to go to starbucks today and say you voted. you get a free coffee.

[Underdog]

[Kirobaito]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

don't forget to go to starbucks today and say you voted. you get a free coffee.

Then go to Krispy Kreme, get doughnuts, then Ben and Jerry's and get ice cream. Gain like thirty pounds.

(then you'll be a real American)

[Windmill360]

Also free tattoo removal here in our very own Dallas, Texas. How American is that?

[Usually Lurkin]

Voter intimidation: not just a whiny metaphor:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCeD1RcJjAg

[GermanDunk]

Could we propose the election over/under game ?

[92bDad]

Originally Posted by Usually Lurkin

Voter intimidation: not just a whiny metaphor:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCeD1RcJjAg

Doesn't this news violate the rules of the thread? I believe this has some type of racial overtones and to my understanding this is not a direction that will be tolerated...but what if it's actual news...I'm so confused...

[Flacolaco]

I can't even go to YouTube at work...dammit....what is it?

[jthig32]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

I can't even go to YouTube at work...dammit....what is it?

Black Panthers standing in front of a polling door, one brandishing a night stick, intimidating voters.

Not actual video of it, but a news reporter interviewing someone at the location who witnessed it.

[mary]

Here's a big list of election widgets and live results.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/1..._n_139361.html

[Flacolaco]

Sounds like there's a little bit of trouble out there in some spots:

http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/11...oters-country/

Intimidation tactics, missing ballots and faulty machinery are plaguing some voters across the country as they go to polling stations to elect either John McCain or Barack Obama to be the next president of the United States.

In Philadelphia, FOX News' Rick Leventhal received a report from Republican poll watcher Chris Hill that two Black Panthers had stationed themselves at the door to a polling station and were intimidating voters. One held a nightstick, Hill said.

Hill told FOX News that he went to talk to the men, and they told him white power didn't rule there.

The man reportedly carrying a nightstick was escorted away from the polling station by police. Outside, FOX News found another Black Panther who said he was a certified observer. Police asked him and the FOX News crew to leave the polling station.

As of 1:50 p.m. EST four polling places in Los Angeles had experienced power outages because of rain, according to the city Department of Water and Power.

One had power restored, one had a generator keeping voters moving, and crews were on the way to the two stations with generators, according to Brooks Baker of the department.

As of noon, FOXNews.com had received complaints from voters around the country that polling stations were not prepared, that voting lists were inaccurate and some voters were worried when they were asked to cast paper ballots instead of using voting machines.

Gregory Holden reported that the voting list at his polling station in Lugoff, S.C., had problems. "Many people who have always voted in this precinct are all of a sudden not on the roll," he said. "They only have five machines and there are about 300 people in line. People are so discouraged some are leaving," he wrote.

Francesca Lourdes, in Maryland, said that she voted with three others, and the polling station where their official voter registration cards told them to vote didn't have them on the registers. She said they had to cast provisional ballots.

In Dayton, Ohio, election volunteers are asking elderly voters if they're sure they want to cast their votes and if they want to change what they picked. "I think its directly related to people voting for John McCain. I witnessed this and so did my husband and we went at two different times. If they are allowed to do this to confuse our elderly, this is a travesty," a voter in Ohio wrote to FOXNews.com.

Watchdog groups and government officials are telling FOXNews.com that voters are reporting a range of problems and that some polling places aren't able to handle the expected record turnout.

According to Wendy Weisner, of the Brennan Center for Justice and non-partisan watchdog group Election Protection Center, the group has been receiving calls from voters experiencing problems with machine breakdowns around the country.

In Virginia, there are reports from more than 40 polling stations that election officials don't have paper ballots to distribute when electronic machines break down.

In Pittsburgh and Philadelphia there are reports from voters of machines breaking down and no emergency paper ballots being distributed.

Voters in Palm Beach County, Fla., are reporting that optical scan machines are breaking down.

An increasing number of problems are being reported with voting machines in Dayton, Ohio.

Election Protection had fielded more than 12,000 calls nationwide by 9 a.m., the group reported.

In New York City, voters began lining up as early as 4 a.m. ET, even though polls didn't open until 6 a.m., said Valerie Vazquez-Rivera, a spokeswoman for the city's Board of Elections.

"We have a system that is traditionally set up for low turnout," said Tova Wang of the government watchdog group Common Cause. "We're going to have all these new voters, but not a lot of new resources. The election directors just have very little to work with."

Polls along the East Coast opened at 6 a.m. and by 8 a.m. one polling station in Atlanta had already run out of paper ballots, according to Clare Schexnyder, media spokeswoman for Georgia Election Protection, a non-partisan watchdog group.

"We had one location [in Atlanta] where all of the machines went down this morning and they didn't come back up until 8:08 a.m. They had problems with cards kicking out and a voter not getting a chance to vote," Schexnyder said.

About 2 million of Georgia's 5 million voters had cast ballots in early voting, she said, but that still leaves 3 million potential voters hitting the polls on Election Day.

An election protection volunteer helped that voter cast her ballot, she said, but there were up to 100 voters in line at one point, waiting while the six machines were down. "They were voting with paper ballots during the time they were down and they ran out of paper ballots and had to switch to provisional ballots. They are provisional ballots that will be counted, but there was craziness at that one polling place."

Virginia has also had its share of election mishaps, although the state is not yet reporting any incidences of fraud or voter intimidation.

Voters are turning out to the polls in record numbers in spite of the weather, according to Susan Pollard, a spokeswoman for the State Board of Elections. "Although a light rain is falling across the state, it does not seem to have dampened turn-out. Lines have been reported at some polling places; however, voting is proceeding quickly at many others."

The rain is causing an unexpected problem -- wet ballots don't feed properly into optical scan machines.

"Poll workers are setting the wet ballots aside and drying them out and asking voters to dry off before they handle the ballots.To make sure you don't have any problem with your ballot going through the optical scanner, be sure to dry your hands before completing your ballot," Pollard said. "All votes will be counted."

Three of the state's 2,349 polling stations opened late, two due to human error. One, at a library in Richmond, opened 25 minutes late because the librarian with the keys to the building overslept.

While the North Virginia suburb of Arlington has had one wet ballot issue, so far county registrar Linda Lindberg describes voting as "smooth sailing." She said 8,000 absentee ballots were sent to troops in Afghanistan and will be counted as a separate group "hopefully before midnight."

To assure that every voter gets a chance to cast a ballot, the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has sent more than 800 monitors to 59 jurisdictions in 23 states.

Several have had problems in the past with minority voters or with providing personnel at polling stations where Spanish or Native American languages are spoken.

In Cuyahoga County, Ohio, where the Feds have sent election monitors, voters reported 58 problems voting to OurVoteLive.org.

In Ohio's Franklin County, Board of Elections spokesman Ben Piscitelli said officials again were dealing with typical glitches. "We're taking care of things like that," Piscitelli said. "But there's nothing major or systemic."

Schexnyder, from Georgia Election Protection, said she doesn't expect the problems voters are reporting to keep them from casting their ballots, although many will wait.

"We'll probably see problems all day as we see long lines, and any times you have computers connected to the equation, I think that every computer glitch we have is going to create longer lines," Schexnyder said.

The part about people messing with the elderly is very sad, if true.

[rabbitproof]

Cali has some huge prop agendas that are going to be bigger than the actual California presidential vote.

Also, I read about an interesting law called Godwin's Law and it makes me think of 92bdad (UGH):

"As a Usenet discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches one."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_Law

[Flacolaco]

Originally Posted by rabbitproof

Cali has some huge prop agendas that are going to be bigger than the actual California presidential vote.

Also, I read about an interesting law called Godwin's Law and it makes me think of 92bdad (UGH):

"As a Usenet discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches one."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_Law

That's funny. I think we have a similar law around here that the longer and longer a thread gets the probability that someone will reference Cuban letting Nash go will approach 1 as well.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

That's funny. I think we have a similar law around here that the longer and longer a thread gets the probability that someone will reference Cuban letting Nash go will approach 1 as well.

[Mavdog]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

That's funny. I think we have a similar law around here that the longer and longer a thread gets the probability that someone will reference Cuban letting Nash go will approach 1 as well.

I believe that you just established "flaco's law"....

congrats. you now have immortality...

[Flacolaco]

Originally Posted by Mavdog

I believe that you just established "flaco's law"....

congrats. you now have immortality...

No, no, no. You can have that one. Flaco's law is that the longer a thread becomes, the probability that someone will make a gay joke about sike approaches 1.

[Flacolaco]

Don't some Countries get their election days' off from work? Why don't we do that?

I'll tell you what...everyone just go home. Tell your boss I said it was fine.

[Flacolaco]

Not really something that we voted on, but here's a bit of news that will affect at least u2 and myself...(not because I smoke, btw, because I live right next to Flower Mound)

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...17dbb62b4.html

Smokers won’t be able to light up in restaurants, bars or public parks beginning next year in Flower Mound, according to an anti-smoking ordinance approved by the town council on Monday night.

The ordinance, which goes into effect Jan. 1, bans smoking in any public building, or within 25 feet of any opening to a public building or place.

But hotels can still designate up to 10 percent of the guest rooms as smoking rooms.

Anyone who violates the new ordinance could face a fine of up to $500.

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

Don't some Countries get their election days' off from work? Why don't we do that?

I'll tell you what...everyone just go home. Tell your boss I said it was fine.

I got the day off...

[92bDad]

Perhaps I should change my tact...

Obama would be like hiring Al Davis!!!

Is there an Al Davis law? Wait a minute, isn't our local beloved Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones, an Al Davis starter kit?

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by 92bDad

Perhaps I should change my tact...

Obama would be like hiring Al Davis!!!

Is there an Al Davis law? Wait a minute, isn't our local beloved Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones, an Al Davis starter kit?

wat



(seriously - is EVERYTHING about you stupid?)

[u2sarajevo]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

Not really something that we voted on, but here's a bit of news that will affect at least u2 and myself...(not because I smoke, btw, because I live right next to Flower Mound)

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...17dbb62b4.html

HECK YES!!!!!!

Something good is happening "politically" for me after all.

[Rhylan]

I don't know which I hate more, smoking or smoking bans. Smoking bans are just so un-American.. businesses ought to be able to decide their own policy. Even so... I hate going out and smelling like smoke.

Denton County dudes.. I voted for the $310M roads & bridges bond and against the $180M county & municipal buildings improvements bond. I'm all about roads & bridges. It's one of the five things I think governments should actually do.

[fluid.forty.one]

how will you guys be watching the coverage tonight? CNN? Fox News? Comedy Central?

Honestly if this Daily Show/Colbert Report coverage actually keeps up with how fast the other major broadcasters are showing the results, I would rather watch that.

[jthig32]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

how will you guys be watching the coverage tonight? CNN? Fox News? Comedy Central?

Honestly if this Daily Show/Colbert Report coverage actually keeps up with how fast the other major broadcasters are showing the results, I would rather watch that.

I'll be watching on KTXAHD....oh, you mean the election? No idea.

[Flacolaco]

Smoking bans are just so un-American

That is my gut feeling as well

But at the same time I am kind of happy about it all the same. It's a little different of course because it's harmful to other people. That's a fact...second hand smoke is harmful to other people. So do you have a right to harm other people? If you want to smoke, fine, You can harm yourself. I imagine when I have kids and I see somebody blowing smoke towards my child I will feel pretty strongly about it.

[fluid.forty.one]

Originally Posted by jthig32

I'll be watching on KTXAHD....oh, you mean the election? No idea.

I'm trying to get off work early so I can watch the Mavs online stream, the election on TV and eat pizza/drink beer.

gonna be a good night

[mary]

Free coffee, donuts and sex toys just the ticket this Election Day

BY HELEN KENNEDY
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Updated Tuesday, November 4th 2008, 3:50 PM
Krispy Kreme is giving out free donut-shaped stars in honor of Election Day.


Doing your civic duty not enough? Participating in a historic election just not going to get you off the couch?
There are a bunch of other inducements to vote Tuesday.
RELATED: MILLIONS WAIT TO VOTE FOR OBAMA, McCAIN

VOTE: HOW DID YOU VOTE? WHO WILL WIN? TAKE OUR EXIT POLLS

Voters can eat well around town today - and even get some free naughty toys.

• Coffee: Starbucks is giving out free small coffees to anyone who says they voted.
• Ice Cream: Ben and Jerry's will give you a free scoop between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.
• Donuts: Krispy Kreme will give you a red-white-and-blue-sprinkled star shaped donut if you are wearing an "I voted" sticker.
• Cheesecake: In Chicago, Eli's Cheesecake Company is handing out free slices to voters. But even if you don't live in the Windy City you can get a free 6-inch Original Pain Cheesecake with the purchase of a 9-inch cheesecake at their website - www.elicheesecake.com. Use promo code VOTE8.
• Tunes: Rock the Vote will give you eight free MP3s to download if you pledge to vote at www.rockthevote.com/pledge.
• Duds: Trina Turk boutiques in the Meatpacking District or Hell's Kitchen will give you a 20% discount on up to three items if you have an "I Voted." www.trinaturk.com/
• More clothes: French Connection will give you 15% off purchases today.
• Chicken: Chick-fil-A restaurants in New Jersey will give you a free chicken sandwich.
• Tacos: California Taco is giving out free tacos, though sadly there are no outlets in New York.
• Sex toys: Babeland locations in SoHo, the Lower East Side and Carroll Gardens will give men a free $20 "Maverick" (get it?) penis sleeve. Women get a free $15 silver bullet mini-vibrator.

"Because that's what our country needs right now: a magical solution to difficult problems," the website says. www.babeland.com.
Food for out of towners: Shane's Rib Shacks is giving out whole meals of three chicken tenders, fries and a drink; the Chattanooga Hot Dog Company is giving out weiners and Todd Conner's pub in Baltimore is even giving out free beer.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/poli..._just_the.html

[92bDad]

So Mary,

How do you like your new 'Silver Bullet'?

[Rhylan]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

That is my gut feeling as well

But at the same time I am kind of happy about it all the same. It's a little different of course because it's harmful to other people. That's a fact...second hand smoke is harmful to other people. So do you have a right to harm other people? If you want to smoke, fine, You can harm yourself. I imagine when I have kids and I see somebody blowing smoke towards my child I will feel pretty strongly about it.

Yup. But you can always choose not to go places that allow smoking. Now, if you're outdoors in a public place and someone lights up and smokes your personal area up, you can say something.

But I hear you. I still go to places that are full of smoke. I just don't stay as long and I spend less...

As long as this stuff stays on a municipal level (and doesn't trickle up the levels of gov't), I'm not too bent about it.

[Mavdog]

Originally Posted by Flacolaco

Not really something that we voted on, but here's a bit of news that will affect at least u2 and myself...(not because I smoke, btw, because I live right next to Flower Mound)

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...17dbb62b4.html

there has been a smoking ban for a few years here in dallas, and it is wonderful, except that there is no real enforcement.

we would sometimes go to blue fish at frankford/tollway for sushi and you must walk thru the bar to get into the serving area. it always has smokers, and when I asked if they were aware of the ordinance they said it is up to the person not the restaurant, they were not the enforcers...and they were right.

we stopped going there btw. the free market does work.

[fluid.forty.one]

Originally Posted by 92bDad

So Mary,

How do you like your new 'Silver Bullet'?

wow

there has to be a way to interpret harassment rules to make this ban worthy

please?

[Rhylan]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

how will you guys be watching the coverage tonight? CNN? Fox News? Comedy Central?

Honestly if this Daily Show/Colbert Report coverage actually keeps up with how fast the other major broadcasters are showing the results, I would rather watch that.

Fox all the way. By far, they have the most knowledgeable contributors. Say what you will about ideological leanings, but Karl Rove and Michael Barone are unbelievably knowledgeable about the mechanics of an election day/night. I'm addicted.

[Flacolaco]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

wow

there has to be a way to interpret harassment rules to make this ban worthy

please?

Keep in mind that if sike had asked her that we'd all be all be laughing.

Of course sike would have had the decency to tack a couple of these on the end

[Rhylan]

All the more reason everyone should support my plan to mandate personal finance education in middle school & high schools...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6ikO...eature=related

[Mavdog]

Originally Posted by fluid.forty.one

how will you guys be watching the coverage tonight? CNN? Fox News? Comedy Central?

Honestly if this Daily Show/Colbert Report coverage actually keeps up with how fast the other major broadcasters are showing the results, I would rather watch that.

cruise depending on who is talking. newshour on pbs is great, comedy central will lighten things up. fox is just too much for the most part (and I predict they will be very, very depressed as the night goes on), cnn is so full of themselves and they have way too many talking heads. probably stop on the national news stations for awhile until they start saying the same things over and over.