Voting and Bake Sales

I've become ashamed to see how unprofessional the voting hall is run. It seems less organized than the ever present bake sale in the anteroom. The small knee high handwritten signs taped to the chairs and tables that are supposed to lead you to the signature table give a clue as to how this is going to go; for a national election, the President of the country! The route through is not thought out, a back and forth walk to get your vote counted, surrounded by some confusion. The paper ballot given is to be marked by a pen in a relatively open cubby, ok, fine. Then you take your ballot to a scanning machine while a friendly gent looks things over, this to make sure you got it right. So much for your privacy of vote.

My sense is that this is one of the better venues. I can only imagine what it is like to vote in other places. Long lines should not be a test of your will to cast your vote. Nor should identification or the myriad other excuses used to suppress. We can do better. Maybe we should spend less time and money campaigning and more time on making the act of voting easy and trustworthy- in the 21st Century no less.  

Parrots and Lemmings

The conversation is deadened by repetition and lack of nuance. A topic not expanded or informed by more voices, is a problem remaining, not a problem solved.

The preachers have provided the model our leaders follow. After all, preaching brings the flock/tribe together in faith, based on conjecture and blindness. Heal by magic, not by deeds. The flock, in ignorant rapturous sway, is more in peril, while the preacher lives well and looks good.

The tribe is a defensive stance. Expand the tribe. No defense is needed.