I Get to Shout

For those of you that have read this blog before you will know that I posted one about having to whisper for the last eight years or be thought a traitor. Coming out as a Democrat was risky enough in my predominately Republican neighborhood and a definitely Republican county, but then to say I was for Barack Obama . . . well, I just figured I had lived a nice long life and if it was over I wanted to go out with a shout and not a whisper. And if McCain won I wanted to emigrate to another country.

So yesterday found me working as an Obama poll watcher in Angel Fire. I and the other volunteers recruited by the Obama campaign were there to insure that regardless of who won we could say this election, as opposed to the last two, was run and won fairly. I told myself that was all I wanted - fairness. The sweeping victory of Barack Obama was icing on the cake. I can now believe that America has a chance of reclaiming its position as a beacon of hope in the world.

Everyon can read the national coverage of this race. But I would like to say something about precinct 01B in Colfax county, New Mexico. There are approximately 1100 registered voters. Of those 1100 the poll judge believes approximately 200 need to be purged from the rolls. This is done through death, notification the person is now registered to vote elsewhere or if they miss voting in two presidential elections. Of the remaining 900 approximately 300 had voted early or by absentee. Before I left my post at four 519 had cast their vote. That is a damn nice turnout.

The poll challenger for Obama, watching all voting irregularities, called me after the final count to say that in our majority Republican precinct Obama had lost by only 34 votes. A lot of Republicans crossed party lines to vote for him and for our new Democratic Senator Tom Udall who carried the precinct. As thrilled as I am that my Red State turned Blue yesterday I am even happier that this election did not seem to be about party as much as it has under GW Bush. (mind you I am not moving to the deep south any time soon). Hopefully, this election will heal political divides that have separated this country for the last eight years, and that Barack Obama's election will heal the racial divides that McCain's base proved still exists among the Joe Six Packs of this nation.

And because Our President elect is a man who is willing to talk and not invade there is hope that we as citizens of the world can come together to address issues like global warming, the global economy, world peace, religious freedom.

But first given the mandate this election gave him, Barack Obama has to heal the wounds inflicted upon this country by the last 10 years of divisive politics. I have great hope that he can. Especially now that we are all allowed to talk outloud without fear of being sent to Gitmo.

From the Bottom Up

Obama won in North Carolina last night and won by a big margin. And in Indiana he came within 2% points of carrying that state. Just when some of us were counting him out.

And not just him. We were also counting any chance of real change in this country. I personally was counting out the United States because if we don't change I personally think we are done. What the last seven years has done to our economy, our respect in the world, our military, our freedoms, our democracy and most importantly the hope of the citizens of our country was frankly looking like a death blow. Too many people had tuned out of the process that once made this country great. And for me the most hopeful sign of the two primaries last night was the record number of voters that turned out to vote.

Joan Baez toward the end of the long and difficult fight against the war in Vietnam decided to step out of the public eye. Our ballad singer for peace was leaving us. And she said in one interview that she had come to believe that it was not the surfer on the crest of the wave that could change the direction the wave was taking but the molecules of water within the base of the wave. And they are doing just that in this election.

The least of us is contributing to Barack's campaign for change. And the little voters that once said they did not matter (with lots of evidence to back that up given the last two presidential election debacles) came out to cast a vote.

And the polls are saying they do not like the sound bytes that had become the way to win an election. The ratings on the various presidential debates which CNN, ABC, Facebook and others mounted was significant. The American people care about the issues, not the terms like Flip Flopper and Up or Down Vote. They are tired of a dictatorship for idiots and want to change the direction the wave is going.

We want a country where the least of us count. Hillary says she has proved she can will the big states. As a citizen of a small state I find that offensive. We are electing someone to be a president of all the states. California, New York, Ohio and Florida have stolen our voice too many times. There are fifty states and we deserve to be counted. If we cannot change this process through the primaries that are being run this year then we need a movement for a constitutional convention to change the election process.

And only the people can call for a constitutional convention. It takes petitions to get it on the ballot of as many of the states as possible. And then we have to vote for it. If our elected officials will not address issues like shortening the election process, setting some real limits on the money so someone cannot buy a presidency, and take a long hard look at the electoral college then we the people. Those little molecules of water need to take control of the direction this country is heading.

Let this be the last election where we are fighting so hard not just for a candidate we can believe in but for the very idea of democracy and one person, one vote that counts. Not to the highest bidder goes the highest office.

It's not over until it's over

In the state of New Mexico due to the heavy turn out for our Democratic Caucus all the votes are not even totally counted yet. Hillary and Barack are currently running at 48% each. They are almost as close nationally. Hillary went into Super Tuesday 60 delegates ahead and Obama narrowed that margin.

While on the Republican front McCain may be announcing he has the Republican nomination wrapped up but he is also in a position where he may be forced to talk Huckabee into being his running mate.

Hillary and Barack essentially battled to a draw with several more state primaries ahead; several of which Barack is leading in the polls. It is basically too early for any candidate for President of the United States to crow. But I was struck last night about the differences in the two parties process for the primaries.

One: The Democratic caucuses and primaries relied on paper ballots so that there would be a physical proof of how the people voted and allow for a paper count. The Republicans on the other hand chose to continue to rely on the paperless computerized voting machines that the previous elections have proven can be manipulated with a cell phone in the hands of a hacker within 30 feet of the machine. And there is no paper trail. So do we really know that McCain won? He is the candidate most espousing the "Bush Views."

Two: The Democrats allow for a splitting of the delegates roughly along the popular vote for each state while the Republicans are winner take all. Win that state by one vote and you get all their delegates. Even if this works perfectly (and there is no cheating at the polling places) this means the Republicans are wanting to please only those states with the most delegates. Like Bush the Republican nominee will be the president of only a small group of the citizens of the United States.

I am however encouraged after yesterday by two things: We the people voted in record numbers. This was especially true of the Democrats. And among the Republicans of the Evangelicals that turned out to vote for Huckabee. The other thing I found encouraging, oddly enough, was the exit poll.

I had never been involved in one of these before. They have a selection process for which precincts are so polled. And they ask more than just, "who did you vote for?" I found taking the "short survey" helped me to see my own reasons for how I voted. And watching ABC and CNN last night where the results of this poll were used in various ways I was able to see that it is through this poll many voting in minority (or even the majority) will have a voice for the direction of the campaigns as they move forward.

It is not over by a long shot. Next big voting day is February 9th with more primaries. Some primaries are as late as April. McCain may have it sewn up before the nominating convention for the Republicans but it does not look like the Democrats will have a clue. And that is good. It means more of our voices will have to hard, more of our opinions considered if they want our votes in the general election November 2008. If they don't there is always going Independent.