The Foley Effect

New polling came in over the weekend that reflects the Foley scandal in various races and it’s astounding.  Many more races became competitive for the Democrats and the GOP is being walloped in formerly tossup races.

It’s hard to tell whether this effect will stay in place over the next three weeks until election day, absent another news story to drive the election returns, because the GOP will be spending tens of millions on negative ads and have their other institutional advantages (gerrymandering, incumbency, vote fraud, e.g.) and their legendary advantage in getting voters to actually vote.

News stories say Rove and Bush are still confident of retaining control over Congress and have no plans in place for any other outcome.

Meanwhile, the national GOP election committees have begun to re-allocate funds.  Mike DeWine in Ohio, for example, with a $4.5 million warchest for the last three weeks will have to go without national backing because national money is going to go to shore up George Allen in Virginia.  Allen had enjoyed a 7 percent lead in the polls in his race against former Reagan Navy Secretary turned antiwar activist Democrat Webb, but is now locked in a statistical tie.  The GOP is also going to focus on Missouri and Tennessee, where Dems hold very slim leads, within the margin of error of the polls.  Bush himself will be making at least two trips to Nashville and Chattanooga in the final days of this election cycle.  The GOP has to win one of the two in Mo. and TN and hold onto Va. to keep hold of the Senate but the Dems must sweep to take the Senate.

On the House side, it’s even more problematic.  I’m just guessing, but it looks like Foley didn’t make anyone change their mind, but it crystallized a lot of thinking for independents and undecideds and moved them solidly into the Dem category.  Dozens of races show movement toward the Democratic candidates and wholesale categories of races have moved from “tossups” to “lean Dem” and from “lean Rep.” into tossups.  Late last week, I doubted if the Dems could take the 12 or 13 necessary races out of 18 tossups to take over the House.  The polls over the weekend show the Dems getting 15 of those 18 and moving another 9 races  into the tossup category that had been safely GOP seats.  Local reporting in New York state, for example, three races I was watching closely in upstate New York included, look like a Dem sweep beneath the coattails of the very popular Hillary and governor candidate Eliot Spitzer.  Pennsylvania and Ohio Republican parties seem to be imploding and bleeding red votes into blue Democrats.  Even such safe Republican seats as Chris Shays in Conn. and Clay Shaw in Florida are no longer good bets.  Two of the three tossup Indiana races I’ve been watching turned into seats the Democrats can consider theirs to lose and the one that was marginally GOP is now marginally Dem. 

It won’t stay like this.  All elections tighten up as it gets closer to election day.  The GOP onslaught of negative ads starts today and will have its effect.  The GOP will still outperform the polls.  The ability to manipulate successfully a small turnout election is still within the grasp of the GOP.

Nevertheless, the gap has now narrowed and I’m changing my prediction slightly.  In the Senate, it will be 51-49 GOP, a net gain of another Dem seat from my earlier thinking.  In the House, it finally looks like the much ballyhooed Dem takeover, but not the sea change i’ve seen written about:  Dems 220, GOP 215. 

A little more politics

I’ve written some about the House races, predicting the Dems will fall short a very few seats of the 218 they need to flip from the GOP hold.

Just briefly on the Senate…

The GOP needs just one of the following six races to go their way:  Rhode Island, New Jersey, Ohio, Montana, Missouri and Tennessee.

If you look at where the GOP is spending their money, they seem to have given up on saving Sen. Burns in Montana, Lincoln Chaffee in Rhode Island and upsetting Menendez in New Jersey, although those races are all within striking distance for Republicans.

That leaves three critical races: Ford (D) vs. Corker in Tenn.; McCaskill (D) vs. Talent in Missouri; and, Sen. Mike DeWine vs. Bob Casey (D) in Ohio.  Polling shows all three of those races within the margin of error of the polls, but Casey has been consistently leading in Ohio by a margin of 3 percent.  The Missouri and Tenn. races have flipped and flopped in the polls, but in this post Mark Foley atmosphere, the Dems have begun to show consistent, if thin leads.  It’s the “firewall” strategy, the press is calling it:  all they have to win is one of these three and it’s game over, so let’s pour money into the races.

If the GOP only wins one of these three races, it’ll be 50-50 in the Senate with V.P. Dick Cheney casting the deciding vote.  Wouldn’t that be interesting?

Anyway, election night Nov. 7, watch for U.S. Senate returns from these three states and you’ll likely know early how things will go.

In the House, I’ll be watching three upstate N.Y. races and three Indiana races in the early returns.  If those six appear to all go to the Dems, it’s game over; four or five of the six and it’s still a tossup; a three and three split or worse and the Dems will fall short in the House.

Yeah, I know.  I’m the only one who gives a shit at this point.  I don’t care.  It’s something that I like to keep up with.

 

some this 'n that

Congressional Quarterly, compiling all polls and other information, says that Dems are pretty sure winners of 208 House seats and the GOP 213.  This is a net gain for Dems and loss for the GOP over the past 60 days.  Two months ago, CQ had the GOP at 219 and Dems at 203.  There are, in addition, 14 seats “too close to call”.  If CQ is to be believed, that means that the Dems must take 10 of those 14 close races while the GOP can keep its majority only winning 5.  In Oklahoma City’s 5th District, the only poll I’ve seen, SurveyUSA, shows Mary Fallin at 62% and Dr. Hunter at 33%, which was about the split 2 years ago when it was Istook vs. Bert Smith.  The most recent polls also show Brad Henry beating Istook 60-30 with the rest undecided.

Today, as has been the case for a couple of weeks, I’m obsessed with a case where I’m behind the 8 ball personally.  I have personal and professional culpability for letting this case get way behind on my side.  Today I have to go before a judge and pronounce “mea culpa, mea maxima culpa” (“my fault, my most grievous fault” for those of you who aren’t current on their Latin Mass from the old Catholic church.)  In 20 years of practicing law, I’ve never been in this position before and it’s been making me lose sleep (and, I’m told, grind my teeth so loudly that others lose their sleep as well).  I guess I’m only human and can be allowed a mistake or two in 20 years, but it is killing me and I don’t like it and I’m upset beyond words.  This has definitely affected other parts of my life and that’s also unlike me.

Had some nice IM contact with my son, Jack, yesterday.  He makes me laugh.  He says he’s writing a play called “The Titanic Adventures of the Love Boat Poseiden”.  We bantered about possible dialogue:  “Bottoms up, girls!” and “You’ve already gone down on the entire ship, you slut.”  He’s the most funny guy I know.  Can you tell I love my child?

I overate at the India food buffet last night with 13 people at the table (unlucky?).  As a result, even though the Ed Norton performance was good, I dozed off during the movie “Down in the Valley”.  Luckily, only George Oz and The Gary were subjected to my poor hosting and they didn’t seem to mind all that much.  I missed the Debster, who is in Albuquerque, NM, according to her hubby.

Despite the above, I’ve been working steady and as hard as I know how and it exhausts me.  What is up with this get to work in the morning and stay all day stuff?  Don’t people know that I have a convertible to ride in and late night music to hear?

I’m looking forward to seeing my sister in S.C. the first of December, despite her blogged problems with my neice.  Hang in there, M.E.

You, too, MCARP, hang in there.  Glad to get a chance to see you doing better last night.

SuzArt, faced also with the prospect of an actual full time job, is shopping the sales, I’m told.  Be careful, girls, Suz has sharp elbows and she’s playing bigger at the post position than her actual height/weight because she can be SO ruthless.

I’ve got to go obsess some more, but remind me to tell you guys how much I enjoy Dayna D, the suicide queen.

 

 

art scene

First, I’ll admit to a slight bias:  I’ve been an unabashed fan of the work of J. Don Cook for three decades, first as a news photographer, then as an art photographer and more recently as a writer, sculptor, painter.  I even like the guy himself, despite the fact that he cut my favorite tie off me at the Red Cup one fine day.

That aside, his new work he debuted at Nova Friday knocked me out.  I really loved it.  Such happy, vibrant colors and a mysterious technique.  In the black and silver techno look of Nova, it just was brilliantly displayed and I could just gush with admiration.

As an art weekend, it was the first I saw and the most vivid, but it only set the stage for a wonderful weekend of artistic pursuits.

That same night was Paseo Gallery Walk with a wonderful retrospective at JRB and — believe it or not — an even stronger show at PAA gallery on the other end of the street.  Suzart oversaw a show of several artists and for there only being about 20 pieces showing, I saw at least 5 that I lusted after.  I want to mention my friend Lynn Barnett Sparks especially since I just adored a small piece she did of a woman’s tatooed bum topped by a masked head.

From there, it would have been easy to feel a letdown, but the furniture and design show at IAO held up well against such good competition.  Loved loved loved several of the pieces, including Kyle Golding’s and someone I don’t think I know named Fitzsimmons (?).  The Bewleys had wonderful glass and she had a black and red legged accent piece that made my mouth water with avarice.

That should have been enough for one weekend, but never sated, I also did the studio tour in the area just west of Classen above 39th.  Martha Green never disappoints with her predominately red and silk fabric pieces and she snuck me into a back room to see a George Oswalt I’d never before seen that she owns. 

One might have been forgiven for not noticing art at Ernesto and Lynne’s gorgeous house and garden, but there was plenty of Sanchez “cellular”/organic/bubbles work to catch your eye and some environmental art under a tent by another artist and did you know that Ron Ferrell the sculptor knows the best places to sit and enjoy a beverage at every studio in town?

Susan Mears house and studio was a cornicopia of bright colored glass and piece after piece of yes-I-want-that-in-my-house work.

We finished up Saturday’s art tour at Paul Medina’s studio, where he was showing some work from the 1990s that had not been seen for all those years, but shared the vivid colors I’d started with on Friday afternoon at J.Don’s show.  The lovely Emily as bartender was just one more piece of art since she’s featured in several of the works more recent by Paul.  Paul’s multimedia work of the past couple of years never fails to engage me on all levels, they are all altars to art and his power and authority as an artist.

sunday, I hid from the world and my cell phone in a dark theatre and watched Departed.  Go.  I’m not even going to say anymore than just go and see it.  It’s worth it and you’ll like it.  It’s a work of art, too, and everyone will be talking about it, so go and form your own commentary.

A final thank you to all of you who went to Dallas and let me into the best bars and restaurants and helped me find the good parking places in your absence.  I enjoyed the better service.

Which brings me to bad service.  Twice now, the service at Bossa Nova Bar above Cafe do Brazil on a Friday night has been absolutely horrid.  If it weren’t for the full moon and skyline available from their rooftop deck, I would have been lividly denouncing the joint to Anna’s face and be grateful to be 86’d. Between the bad service upstairs and the bad music set too loud downstairs …  grrrrrrrrr!!!  I like the place, the food and Anna.  I really really WANT that place to succeed.  I gotta think twice about whether I’ll go again on Friday night.

In the same way other guys pour over baseball statistics or football scores, I’ve been obsessed with polling and other political insider crap and I’ve spent a hell of a lot of time pouring over minutia.  The problem of predicting political outcomes is the same as with a college football game or a baseball World Series.  This political year is especially frustrating because it’s a low turnout cycle since the presidency isn’t on the line.  This means a very small change among those who actually go and vote (as opposed the everyone who has a political opinion and may sometimes vote) can make a big difference in the outcomes.  This year’s primaries had record low turnouts.  Randy Graf in Arizona is the GOP nominee and a Republican nomineewould ordinarily be a good bet in the Tucson area that has been represented for several terms by a retiring well-liked incumbent.  But, a small number of very conservatives voters beat the national GOP choice of a more moderate and less strident conservative.  Now, Graf is getting pummelled by a Democrat in the polls, but he was also being pummelled in the polls when he won his primary.  Same for the Democrats in Conn., where a minority position held fervently by those who actually voted ousted Sen. Lieberman, a former party vice presidential nominee and, for all appearances earlier this year, a shoo-in.  There’s also the consideration of the institutional advantages the Republicans have built into the system.  From language and framing the issues to gerrymandering and maybe even vote fraud where absolutely necessary, and certainly their get-out-the-vote superiority, the GOP outperforms the polls and can really make polls look foolish in low turnout cases.  The media I’m reading — even the insider commentary — has its own biases to weigh and the polls themselves are not equal — some are more persuasive (like Gallup) to me than others (like Zogby) and that’s a REAL insider thing about methodology, statistics and interpretation. Anyway, it comes down to reading tea leaves and chicken entrails. 

Bedtime.  Big week.  Things to do, people to sue, lives to ruin. 

 

 

Bite thy tongue, John

My interpersonal skills dropped off the low end of the scale yesterday.

Not once, but twice yesterday someone was a good enough friend to call me on my bullshit and say that a remark of mine was out of line.

Guilty as charged, your honor.

If you only knew how much I’d like to avoid personal responsibility and blame this on last night’s full moon.  Alas, no can do.

From my personal and interior point of view, the matter is made worse by the fact that my mouth and brain were disconnected by my worry over a case in which I bear personal responsibility for bad lawyering.  That’s actually pretty rare for me over the past 20 years and I’m not happy with myself or the situation.

I let my personal disappointment with my professional performance spread bad juju to my personal relationships.

And, it wasn’t even merely the two friends who confronted the situation.  The lovely Juliet took some poor behavior in stride, forgiving me without ever saying a word, but clearly disappointed in my behavior.

I’m sure there are others who had the misfortune to encounter me — store clerks and other anonymous souls — who put up with my moodiness.

So, this OU-TX weekend, I’m thinking about this out loud on this blog.

As many of you know, I’ve made some changes in my life lately.  Principally, I’ve put a much higher priority on my work and devote much much more time to my law practice.

I haven’t done so quite as thoughtfully as I might, it occurs to me.

When working expanded in my schedule, other things took a back seat or disappeared from my day altogether.  I haven’t given any thought until today what was left in and what was left out.

One of the things, I now realize, that has been absent from my life that once was a focus of my life is “getting centered”.  Formerly, there was a time every day (or nearly so) that I read, prayed, got perspective, meditated, or just was quiet and undisturbed.

I knew that I had lost my daily blogging and journaling and thought little about it, but it’s now more clear that those things helped me keep my perspective and articulate what was going on with me internally.  Those things were in my life for a reason: they help me understand what my place is within the universe and what my own role is in life, especially my own life (whether I shall be the hero or the villain in my own life, Charles Dickens).

When I’m thinking about how I messed up my case and what I can do to escape the consequences, I’m not in the now, I’m in the past and the future.  When I’m thinking about how I can cover my own ass, I’m not considering how I affect others, what they will feel if I unleash my cynicism and bile.

One of the things I said yesterday for which I was called down directly implicated my sobriety.  One of the many reasons I quit drinking was that alcohol destroyed my filters and I very often awoke with a sense of dread and remorse about something I’d said the night before.  Over the years, I’ve destroyed many relationships by the simple expedient of being an asshole with a penchant for vivid language and hyperbole.

I’ve also today had occasion to remember that my estrangement with one of my sisters is about how much like me she is and how much I hate to see my own character flaws reflected in her (“you spot it, you got it” is the AA aphorism).  She does not seem to be able to be happy and feel good about herself unless she’s tearing me down and it wears on me.  Now, I must confront the idea again that I sometimes leverage myself up by pushing others down.

This redeployment of my time and energy seems to have exacerbated this problem.

Another way of looking at the problem is that I’ve been so concerned with my own stuff that I’m inconsiderate of others’ feelings.  This is particularly piquant personally because I’ve gone so far as to break off romantic relationships because I was so important that some woman’s inability to pay 100 percent of her attention to me 100 percent of the time offended me — how could they be so inconsiderate? 

What is most distressing for me about this is the sense of hopelessness and despair that I will ever be free of these character flaws.  I have the sense that I can be made aware of the problem and that I can analyze the problem and can even mitigate the behaviors, but that it’s such an integral part of my character that I’ll never be rid of it.  It’s a neverending fight for truth justice and the american way, Superman.

I’d like to just stop here and say, OK I have a problem with my mouth and I’ll try to be better and I’ll make sure I have a time every day to reflect and that will help with the problem.

I can’t do that.

The reason I can’t just stop at that point is that the problem is metastic. 

I’ve not written, composed a poem, painted, done sumii for a very long time.  I know that I do those things not just to express my creativity, but also because it feeds and nurtures my soul and enhances my life.  I’ve let my time budget get out of control and I’ve been thoughtless about my priorities.

Playing off a theme near and dear to a lawyer’s heart, that time IS money, it’s like I’ve needed clothes and bought an Armani suit and needed to eat, so I went to Coach House for steak au poive, but meanwhile, I can’t pay my electric bill and the lights are off at the house.

Lately, work has overwhelmed all other time priorities.  Lately, my relationship with the lovely Juliet (whatever the hell that relationship is) has been a high priority.  Lately, politics has consumed my interest and I spend an inordinate amount of time on the internet pouring over polls and commentary.  Then there is the immediate shiney object on the ground that distracts me like the cat barf I just found on the carpet that caused me to stop this blogging and reach for the cleaning materials and the mental note to talk to MCARP about same.

I have not been very good in my life with monetary budgeting and now I find myself forced to confront the consequences of that and pay attention to financial priorities and I am very much struggling to do at 57 what others learn much earlier.

I am not very good at keeping to a schedule and a schedule is very much like a budget, except for time rather than money.  Now, I find myself forced to confront the consequences of that and pay attention to my priorities and I am very much struggling to do at 57 what others learn much earlier.

I know I’m not the first one to struggle with a budget or a schedule and that there’s wisdom out there so that I don’t have to invent the wheel all over again.

However, after one says “here’s how to make a budget” or “here’s how to make a schedule”, there’s still a problem:  what, after all, ARE my priorities, either financial or timely?

I would like to have some balance because it seems that having balance would ameliorate other problems, like running off my mouth because I’m so feckless and inconsiderate when I don’t pay attention to getting centered or running up credit card debt because I’m so hedonistic I go to coffee and ride around with the top down instead of billing files.

Once one is budgeted, scheduled and prioritized, where is the spontaneity and surprise?

I bet I’ve seen, scanned and dismissed a thousand stories about women trying to balance work and home.  That’s their problem, I thought.  How is that problem different from my problem?

My reality is that I can budget, schedule and prioritize, but eventually will simply tear all that down because I so hate being regimented that I despise even my own authority to do so and blame the world for that regimentation rather than myself.

All at once, it seems, a minor problem of a social slip — a gaffe directed at a friend — becomes a psychological crisis of conscience.  All at once, it seems, a simple task of making a budget and a personal schedule becomes an existential crisis and a philosophical question of what is important in life.

Hell, I’m not sure I have the time and money to budget, schedule and prioritize because I’m on my way to a sports bar to watch OU play Texas and then to an art studio tour and I’ll hook up with Juliet for a party after that and …

 

Don't Bogart that joint, my friend; pass it on to meeeeee

WASHINGTON – Good news for aging hippies: smoking pot may stave off Alzheimer’s disease.

New research shows that the active ingredient in marijuana may prevent the progression of the disease by preserving levels of an important neurotransmitter that allows the brain to function.

Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in California found that marijuana’s active ingredient, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, can prevent the neurotransmitter acetylcholine from breaking down more effectively than commercially marketed drugs.

It is also more effective at blocking clumps of protein that can inhibit memory and cognition in Alzheimer’s patients, the researchers reported in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics.

The researchers said their discovery could lead to more effective drug treatment for Alzheimer’s, the leading cause of dementia among the elderly.

Those afflicted with Alzheimer’s suffer from memory loss, impaired decision-making, and diminished language and movement skills. The ultimate cause of the disease is unknown, though it is believed to be hereditary.

Marijuana is used to relieve glaucoma and can help reduce side effects from cancer and AIDS treatment.

 

Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited.  

A hardnosed political look

Let’s look at the political map in the wake of the resignation of Rep. Mark Foley, R-FL.

Dems really have their hopes up of taking the House and making a run at the U.S. Senate.

Sorry about that.

The Dems need 15 more to take control of the House.  In the 15 seats most competitive, the GOP holds leads in 4, the Dems have leads in 7 and four are just too close to call.

The problem is the GOP get out the vote effort in the last 72 hours of the election.  Starting Friday night before the Tuesday election, the GOP “microtargets” their most reliable voters (mostly evangelicals).  This is very effective.  It is so effective that the GOP outperforms the polling by about 3 percent.  In other words, if a poll shows a GOP candidate at 47 percent, that candidate will get to 50 percent on election day.

Factoring that in, in the 15 most competitive races, the GOP takes 8 or 9 of the races, leaving the Dems that many short of taking control of the House.

A similar analasis of U.S. Senate races brings us to the same place.  Dems need 5 seats to take control.  The Dems are losing in a N.J. race where the candidate is being smeared with corruption charges, so the Dems need 6 seats elsewhere.  It looks like the Dems will win in Penn. (against Santorum) and Washington, and are tied or have slim leads in places like Missouri and Tennessee.  However, when that 3 percent 72-hour GOTV machine kicks in, the Dems fall short.

So, how does the whole Foley thing play out?

The Dem hope is that the “values voters” that the GOP targets in the last 72 hours before election day will sit on their hands and not go vote, disenheartened by this latest attack on their core values and that Dems will, for once, outperform the polls because the energized “left” is angry and wants to “send a message” to Bush.

It could happen.

However, as Ring Lardner Jr. once wrote:  The race is not always to the swift, nor the fight to the strong, but that’s the way the smart money bets.

Is anyone still out there?

I haven’t blogged since Sept. 21st?

Seems like just yesterday.

I’m not doing much of a good job with my personal journal, either.  I’ve routinely cataloged my every motion every day for years, but lately not so much.

Can’t explain it.

Even looking back at this blog, I’ve written about nothing but politics for several posts in a row.  Nothing personal at all.

(Political aside:  My prediction is that Brad Henry will beat Istook handily, that the GOP will retain control of the U.S. Senate 52-48 and the U.S. House 221- 214.  If you want to know why, ask me some time.)

Reading MCARP’s blog and talking to him, I’m concerned without freaking out about his health and pray he gets back on track without great troubles.

Suzart has made me very happy by accepting a new position at the OU Health Sciences Center that will provide her with more money and great benefits, chiefly health insurance.

So, what have I been up to lately?  You might well ask.  Or not.

Last night, I was again at the door as a volunteer for OVAC’s annual 12X12 show.  This year it was held at the old DPS building at 410 N. Walnut.  It was hot and it was crowded and the art was fairly strong.  I bid on a 3 dimensional piece, a copper covered clay bust, but I haven’t received a call that my minimum bid was accepted, so I don’t guess I got it.  I liked several pieces very much, including Oz’s horse, Michael’s smokey oil field, Brandenburg’s polkadot sillouette, Medina’s …  I liked my friends’ work, I guess.

Saw a lot of friends and acquaintences at the 12X12, but didn’t witness any dramas.  The Stringents were the only music act I caught and I liked the four girls on strings VERY much.

Last Wednesday, I had my first paid modeling gig.  It was for the Christmas catalog for SouthWest Publishing, the people who put out the magazines “Nichols Hills”, “Historic Homes” and “Downtown”.  Me and some very beautiful young women wore furs in a Heritage Hills home made up like Christmas and toasted each other at a lovely table set at Nonna’s in Bricktown at 8 a.m.  The most fun for me was being told by the SW people that they wanted me because I looked to them like Ralph Lauren.

Mostly, I’ve been working.  Sept. was a turnaround month for me and I made pretty good money after several months of being lazy and getting into big debt problems.  Now, I’ve paid off all the medical bills I rolled up in June plus a few others and have a small amount of money in the bank and I’ve billed more hours in the past 30 days than in the previous several months. 

However, the big turnaround in September wasn’t as visible as a checkbook register.  The big turnaround was between my ears.  Work that would set off a frenzy of procrastination in the past has been fun — for some unknown inexplicable reason, I’ve embraced the work and enjoyed the hell out of it.  Go figure.  I can’t explain it, I’m just going with it.  I can’t say this is related, but I took in a new client Friday and will meet a new client Monday morning.  I need the work and they need my help. Capitalism works, if not always fairly.

I’ve taken on a sponsee in AA and I take him to meetings at 8 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday night at the Western Club.  I haven’t sponsored anyone in a couple of years and it was about time I took on that duty to pass along my sobriety.  It’s been gratifying to be asked and it helps me stay sober to watch him get sober.

My friend John X is involved in a project he’s calling OKC Noir.  He makes 30 second “films” in black and white of various people and little sound bites of their conversation covers the images.  Go to his website and catch a few — Sonic Sharon and Mara are good ones.  He’s asked me to help recruit folks for the project and if you would be willing to spend 45 minutes to an hour with a helluva guy and get to be UTUBE famous, please contact me or him.  It’s for art’s sake.

I’m sending out invoices this weekend, so it’s back to work.  As my fellow attorney, John Mc. at Starbucks, put it:  “Just two more working days until Monday.”  Ah, well. 

Peace out.

Electronic voting update

A couple days ago, I wrote that I thought the stage was being set for another scandal about voting irregularities.

I learned today the Diebold election machines can be opened with the round mini-bar keys you can steal from any motel/hotel.