Paris Parfait

Happy Halloween!

Carnivale mask-like Juliet balconies, Casa Batllo, Barcelona, Spain.

Oh, no! Not the robots!

Bush + McCain = More of the same. Now THAT'S scary!

Scroll down the page for two other posts today.

A political fashion statement?

Designer Jean-Charles de Castlebajac's spring 2009 collection features fashion with Sen. Barack Obama's image superimposed. This photo appears in the current edition of French Elle.

While riding in a taxi across Paris, I heard a radio announcer interviewing Jean-Charles de Castelbajac about his designs. He said the Obama image is not intended in a political sense, but to represent a new generation of ideas, change and optimism. The radio announcer then talked about coverage of the American election on November 4th. In French, I told the cabdriver, "I hope Obama wins; it's important for the United States." He agreed, saying, "It's not only important for the United States, but for the whole world that wants peace, not war."

Shades of McCarthyism? Vote for change.

In Harper's, Scott Horton writes about the new McCarthyism. An excerpt:

"The last weeks of every presidential campaign I can remember bring out the crazies. Candidates are reviled as “racists,” “Nazis,” “Communists,” and the like. But this year the process has gotten nuttier and more malicious than usual. Perhaps it is a sign of desperation, given that polling does not suggest a close campaign, and a party now long entrenched appears to be poised for a swift kick in the behind—for the second time running."

",,,In the current issue of National Review, Andrew McCarthy continues his campaign to link the Democratic nominee to various and sundry Hyde Park radicals. This time it is “PLO advisor turned University of Chicago professor Rashid Khalidi,” who now heads the Middle Eastern Studies Department at Columbia University..."

"Rashid Khalidi is an American academic of extraordinary ability and sharp insights. He is also deeply committed to stemming violence in the Middle East, promoting a culture that embraces human rights as a fundamental notion, and building democratic societies. In a sense, Khalidi’s formula for solving the Middle East crisis has not been radically different from George W. Bush’s: both believe in American values and approaches. However, whereas Bush believes these values can be introduced in the wake of bombs and at the barrel of a gun, Khalidi disagrees. He sees education and civic activism as the path to success, and he argues that pervasive military interventionism has historically undermined the Middle East and will continue to do so. Khalidi has also been one of the most articulate critics of the PLO and the Palestinian Authority—calling them repeatedly on their anti-democratic tendencies and their betrayals of their own principles. Khalidi is also a Palestinian-American. There is no doubt in my mind that it is solely that last fact that informs McCarthy’s ignorant and malicious rants."

"...Of course, Khalidi has been involved in Palestinian causes. McCarthy ought to ask John McCain about that, because McCain and Khalidi appear to have some joint interests, and that fact speaks very well of both of them. Indeed, the McCain–Khalidi connections are more substantial than the phony Obama–Khalidi connections McCarthy gussies up for his article. The Republican party’s congressionally funded international-networking organization, the International Republican Institute–long and ably chaired by John McCain and headed by McCain’s close friend, the capable Lorne Craner–has taken an interest in West Bank matters. IRI funded an ambitious project, called the Palestine Center, that Khalidi helped to support. Khalidi served on the Center’s board of directors. The goal of that project, shared by Khalidi and McCain, was the promotion of civic consciousness and engagement and the development of democratic values in the West Bank. Of course, McCarthy is not interested in looking too closely into the facts, because they would not serve his shrill partisan objectives..."

And the Jewish Telegraphic Agency debunks McCain's smears and lies about Rashid Khalidi.

Not clean-cut enough for 'ya?

Meanwhile, at a McCain campaign rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, audience members were pulled out of the crowd, apparently because of their looks!.

McCain's inept campaign strategies

And it says a lot about the floundering state of the McCain campaign when "Joe the Plumber" they've adopted as their mascot - real name Sam - owes back taxes, makes outrageous statements about issues he knows nothing about and would actually benefit from Obama's tax scheme, rather than McCain's? Plus, Joe/Sam has an agent who thinks television audiences are breathlessly awaiting Joe/Sam's presence; but Joe/Sam really just wants to be a country singer. The hopelessly ill-informed people in McCain's campaign - and his running mate tops the list - do not help inspire confidence in the candidate.

Vote for change.

Readers' reactions

Undisputed wisdom, Shakespeare & Co., Paris.

Sometimes when speaking out about politics, one gets lambasted from those who disagree or from those uninterested in their government's failings. Sometimes readers express annoyance that they don't see pretty pictures or light-hearted fare they're expecting. Maybe some email filled with hate arrives; perhaps a few rude comments need deleting. So when someone writes a beautiful poem, because of the writer's refusal to be silenced, it's an auspicious occasion.

Today I am honoured and humbled by my Canadian friend Sherrie's lovely tribute "You Could Have Walked Away."

"... you could have walked away
but you stood strong to your convictions
You are the heart of decency, empathy
truth and responsibility
You could have walked away
nestled in comfort, elevated in a new life
Instead you speak loudly for those without a voice
for those without a choice
for those with less,
You speak the mind of the fearful ones
scared of opposing wrath
Committed to change you bravely lead the way
educating the unaware,
Standing for the old healthy America
Other nations look to you with respect
Thank you for your voice of reason
Determination, compassion
I am proud to know a woman
of your quality and substance
A passionate woman
daring to speak against opposition
Heroic enough to speak the truth
because you could have walked away!"

Thank you to Sherrie and to all who have written or commented, expressing solidarity and support for my political posts.

Do we want a president who doesn't understand economics?

The politics of hope

I grew up around good people like this man. This video reminds us of the hope and simple goodness in honest, hard-working people; qualities that unite us.

In contrast, the McCain-Palin campaign centers around issues that divide us. United we stand; divided, we fall. Instead of addressing our problems, McCain and Palin flail from subject to subject. If they're not speculating wildly about socialism, communism and changing the Constitution, they're lying about Sen. Obama's positions. These tactics are of course, attempts to change the conversation, smokescreens for McCain's lack of ideas for the economy and the myriad difficult issues America faces. On Tuesday, McCain's economic adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin admitted Obama's health care plan was better for consumers than McCain's proposal.

A good example of the differences in philosophy between the presidential candidates is that when it rained Tuesday in Pennsylvania, Sen. Barack Obama stood in the cold and pouring rain - without a hat or umbrella - and spoke from the heart to 9,000 supporters about issues that matter. Sen. John McCain cancelled his rally, due to the weather.

If you have any questions or doubts about who's the better man to lead the country, watch Sen. Obama's speech tonight on your local television station or cable channel. If you missed it, see it online here and various sources.

Scroll down the page for two other posts today.

Extreme makeover, campaign edition

Something about this doll - the dazed look or maybe the excessive blush - reminded me of Sarah Palin's extreme makeover at the hands of her highly-paid Hollywood makeup artist. The New York Daily News says Palin's sheer ineptitude shines through the window-dressing. You can come along on an interactive shopping expedition. Notice her would-be nemesis Vladimir Putin peeking in the window? Hmmm, do we really need a shotgun to go shopping? And what about that flute!!??

My uncle sent this link to Roseanne Cash's witty article in The Nation. Cash writes about why she'd make a better vice-presidential pick than Palin.

On a serious note, Palin continues lying about Obama's statements. But ABC News calls her out, point by point.

Bob Cesca writes in the Huffington Post about The Mandatory Rejection of Sarah Palin. "...There are a lot of things to ridicule about Sarah Palin's incomprehensible speaking style, her pathological dishonesty and her backwards, simplistic views on the issues. But it's her politics of fear and division that must be wholly rejected on Tuesday because it's too terrible to imagine waking up one week from today in an America that rewards the awfulness and fear which she and her subterranean allies require in order to politically exist.

"So before we arrive at the end of the Bush dark ride, let's make sure the Sarah Palin dark ride comes to a complete stop on Tuesday."

Meanwhile, John McCain is criticizing Obama's ties to a respectable Palestinian-American professor - the same professor whose work McCain himself helped fund, to the tune of nearly a million dollars. Read more here.

The early 20th-century porcelain doll pictured is in the playroom at La Pedrera, one of Antoni Gaudi's architectural wonders in Barcelona, Spain.

Tracking voting issues

Update Wednesday evening Paris time:

Today marks the 6th anniversary of the Help America Vote Act. The act was intended to create opportunities for states to upgrade their voting systems to make them more efficient and fair. Most states used more money to upgrade voting equipment than train pollworkers or improve state databases. Now, four years and $2 billion dollars later, both officials and voters wonder whether it isn’t time for more comprehensive election reform.

Battleground voting round-up:

Colorado: The battle still rages over whether or not to reinstate thousands of voters whose names were removed from state records.

Florida: Governor Charlie Crist’s order to extend early voting hours comes as a welcome relief to thousands of voters. The move has cut wait times tremendously.

Indiana: Democratic and Republican lawyers are preparing for the “last stand” on early voting in Lake County. The state Court of Appeals will hear the case on Thursday.

North Carolina: Election watchdogs are working to educate voters since a quirk in North Carolina’s balloting process requires that even if you vote “straight ticket,” you must also check your choice of candidate for president. Many fear that countless voters’ choice for president will not be reflected, because of this feature.

Pennsylvania: A judge is weighing a request to issue paper ballots more often, should voting machines break down. With huge turnout expected and machine problems present in states with early voting, many voter groups argue that paper ballots are a necessary back-up.

Virginia: The Obama campaign is encouraging state officials to make certain all military votes are counted in this year’s election.

Georgia residents wait hours to vote

Some Georgia residents have waited six to eight hours to cast an early ballot, mainly due to computer glitches and an overload of the state’s computerized voter verification system. Meanwhile, a federal panel ruled Monday that Georgia should have sought Department of Justice approval before implementing a Social Security number check of new voters’ immigration status. The ruling means that voters whose eligibility has been questioned must be allowed to cast a ballot November 4th.

Gearing up for November - 5th?

A fake flier is circulating in Hampton County, Virginia, advising Republicans to vote on November 4th (officially Election Day for all voters) and Democrats on November 5th. The flier makes use of official logos and mastheads, and makes reference to the General Assembly adopting “emergency regulations to ease the load on local eletorial (sic) precincts…” Yes, the Republicans went to all that trouble to create a fake document, but didn't bother to use spellcheck.

No match, no problem

Broward County, Florida has joined other counties like Miami-Dade in easing its policy, allowing a one-stop Election Day option for some 1,600 voters who remain “unverified” under the state’s “no match, no vote” rule. While unverified voters still need to vote by provisional ballot, they will be allowed to attach copies of approved identification and no further action will be required. As the Wall Street Journal reported, provisional ballots are already being issued, according to voters calling into Election Protection’s 1-866-OUR VOTE hotline.

Voter purging

In Georgia, thousands of eligible voters and U.S. citizens have been incorrectly identified as non-citizens and have been removed from the voter rolls. Several election watchdog groups have filed a lawsuit in Colorado, alleging that more than 20,000 names were wrongfully removed from state voting records.

Flipping out

Vote “flipping” made its debut in West Virginia, when voters would attempt to hit a touch-screen button for one candidate but found their vote “jumped” to another. Similar problems have now been identified in three other states: Ohio, Tennessee and Texas. The problematic machines are all made by the same company. Election officials have blamed the problems on the machines being poorly calibrated.

Watching the polls

Both Democrats and Republicans will have volunteers deployed on Election Day as poll watchers, particularly in battleground states like Florida. The campaigns are also organizing a small army of lawyers to be dispatched to problematic precincts at a moment’s notice, should any contested votes become an issue. Watchdog groups such as the Election Protection coalition also have been monitoring early voting and troubleshooting problems.

You, too can watch the polls, thanks to the launch of OurVoteLive.org, a site developed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation for Election Protection. Now through Election Day, you can visit OurVoteLive.org to view, sort and analyze all the reports coming into Election Protection from voters around the country.

A post-election giveaway

L'abeille - The bee. This black lacquered sign was once posted on the door of a French store. Long a symbol of French royalty, the bee was the model for the fleur de lys. Later, Napoleon chose the bee as his personal symbol.

I purchased this sign in September at the brocante in Chatou. On November 5th - the day after the American presidential election - I will draw a reader's name, then send the sign to the winner via La Poste.

To enter your name for the giveaway, simply leave a one-sentence comment about hope, esperance, esperanza..

And this is one of the most hopeful stories I've ever read.

Speaking out, when silence is easier

The Bush administration's failed policies created epic problems, which the next president urgently must address. In this video, Pink and some British artists sing about the downtrodden state of the Union, thanks to the Bush administration's relentless devotion to self-interests and careless disregard of the middle class and the poor. (Regular readers may notice this is the second time I've posted this video).

"How do you sleep while the rest of us cry?

How do you dream when a mother has no chance to say goodbye?

How do you walk with your head held high?

Can you even look me in the eye?"

I know what you're thinking. Not another political post! But read this essay, please. It's written from my heart, for my daughter, for our country.

This is a subject about which I am passionate; it would be wrong to remain silent. Because this election is critical, CRITICAL, to what happens next for our country: the paths we walk, the alliances we forge, the different roads on which our ideologies converge. Never in my lifetime has it been more important to speak out for change.

I've worked hard all my life. For nearly 15 years, I was a single mom, sometimes struggling to make ends meet. I had little hope of owning a home or having enough money left after paying my bills to seriously save for the future. Thankfully, my daughter received the very best education. But private high schools and university would have been out of reach, if not for scholarships and later, my husband's employer paying a third of her tuition. My daughter would have had to take out student loans and spend the first third of her career weighed down by heavy debt, struggling to repay the funds.

The land of the free and home of the brave is hemorrhaging compassion, if many of us not only can't afford college tuition, but are just two paychecks away from being out on the street. God forbid if a catastrophic illness interrupts our salary-earning ability. Something is wrong with our country when paying the mortgage or the rent might mean juggling Peter to pay Paul; going without a doctor's checkup or replacing balding tires because the budget's depleted.

So many people are trying to survive on minimum wage, while too many others are losing their jobs, as factories and plants are mothballed or closed. Something is wrong when our production jobs are shipped overseas, resulting not only in higher unemployment levels at home, but inferior quality products shipped back and sold in the US.

We are all dancing too close to the precipice these days. Losing everything we've worked for our whole lives is a real threat. And that's not right.

My grandparents grew up during the Depression and had to overcome many obstacles to eventually be successful. They never forgot what it was to worry about money. Even when they had plenty, the hard lessons learned from the Depression colored how they handled money the rest of their lives.

Our system of checks and balances is broken. Our infrastructure is crumbling, with bridges,roads,tunnels and airport runways falling into dangerous disrepair. Something is wrong with our country when the rich are favored and the rest of us struggle endlessly. Something is wrong when those who can't afford health insurance are turned away from emergency rooms and sent to another hospital, perhaps worsening or even dying for lack of urgent treatment, within that span of a few miles and a few minutes.

Something is wrong with our country when a great city like New Orleans is swamped with a hurricane, while George Bush and John McCain laugh it up over birthday cake. Something is wrong with America when it takes FEMA several days to provide the most basic services, then is unable to coordinate federal and state efforts to get the city up and running again. Something is wrong when New Orleans citizens are forced to find shelter in other states, because government efforts to assist them failed.

Something is wrong when our children lack basic educational skills to compete with the rest of the world. Speaking only English is not something to brag about; even the poorest kids in refugee camp schools often are learning two or three languages. Superior science and math skills are helping the Chinese and the Indians surpass us in the global marketplace. Too many children are being left behind in the United States of America, our country rich in natural resources, but impoverished in management.

Something is criminal about our soldiers being sent to war under false pretenses. And sent and sent and sent, long after the president's lies were exposed. Meanwhile, the real war on terror's firestorm blazes out of control in Afghanistan. Something is deeply wrong when we're not allowed to witness and photograph our soldiers' coffins returning, their bodies buried and publicly mourn their loss.

Something is cataclysmic as our civil liberties are eroded, undermining our Constitution. It is outrageous that our personal phone calls and private emails are monitored by the National Security Agency, with the collusion of corporate behemoths including AT&T and Verizon.

Something is desperately wrong when our personal cameras, MP3 players, laptops, cellphones and other electronic equipment can be seized at our nation's borders, without due cause - violating the Fourth Amendment.

Something is wrong when right-wing religious zealots try to blur the Constitutional distinction between Church and State and dictate our immigration and marriage policies.

Something is wrong when a self-righteous television channel and talk-radio shows spew divisive talking points masquerading as "news." These pundits recklessly incite and inflame hate, all in the quest for Nielsen ratings.

Something is wrong when the average American knows the latest twists and turns of celebrity entertainment, but doesn't care enough to get involved in government, even as stock markets tumble and everything around us seems on shaky ground.

Something is wrong when billions of dollars are spent on political campaign advertisements, while 24 million Americans still go to bed hungry and millions more sleep on the streets or in their cars.

Something is wrong when a Republican presidential candidate in questionable health chooses an unqualified, uninformed person as his running mate. Such reckless behavior puts the whole country at risk.

Something is wrong when presidential candidates deliberately mislead the public with outright lies and/or misleading information. Something is wrong when the public has to search for the truth, because politicians and sometimes even the mainstream media fail to deliver the facts.

Something is wrong when our country runs a rogue prison at Guantanamo Bay. Suspects have been locked up for years without trial, in which none of the usual laws, international treaties and human rights seem to apply.

So many things are wrong with our great democracy. We have to solve these problems. We can't afford four more years of failed policies and finger-on-the-trigger foreign intervention.

After Sept. 11, 2001, America enjoyed the great goodwill of the entire world. After eight years of the Bush-Cheney administration, our friends' attitudes have shifted, first from solidarity and sympathy, then to dismay and anger at the stupidity of putting Bush-Cheney in office for a second term. Most recently our foreign friends and allies have viewed us with a mixture of disgust and pity. Our leadership and international authority have been severely diminished. We have lost our powerful influence on the world stage.

We have lost our way.

And finding our way back isn't enough. We have problems that didn't exist four years or even four months ago. We have no choice but to change direction for our country. And I believe with my whole heart that the only way we can do that is with Sen. Barack Obama as president and Sen. Joe Biden as vice-president. They have the vision, wisdom, strength and steadiness to lead us through the tough challenges ahead.

Ask yourself what you want for your children and your grandchildren. They're already facing unimaginable challenges, with two long wars, huge budget deficits, scatter-shot schools and uneven educational programs, as well as cleaning up our poisoned environment and stem potentially-catastrophic consequences of climate change. Do we want our children's entire lives to be spent cleaning up our messes? Or do we want something better for them? A future where they have hope for brighter tomorrows, including better education, higher-paying jobs, cleaner air, healthier food and cures for baffling diseases?

I urge you to exercise your freedom and responsibility as Americans and go to the polls and vote. Have a little faith in the goodness and optimism at the heart of the American spirit. Vote for change. Do it for your children and grandchildren. Do it for your own peace of mind. Do it for us; for our country. Yes, we can! Never have we needed each other more.

Barack Obama for president.

Photo of Barack and Michelle Obama with former President Bill Clinton, courtesy of Obama for America.

Now that's just crazy talk

Sarah Palin keeps saying some pretty strange things. Her remarks Saturday at a campaign rally in Iowa suggested Sen. Barack Obama would turn the US into a Communist country. These deranged remarks surpassed even her idiotic fruit fly research comments. Either she has gone over the edge or she thinks her audience is comprised of morons.

As reported by Sam Stein at Huffington Post, Palin told the crowd:

"See, under a big government, more tax agenda, what you thought was yours would really start belonging to somebody else, to everybody else. If you thought your income, your property, your inventory, your investments were, were yours, they would really collectively belong to everybody. Obama, Barack Obama has an ideological commitment to higher taxes, and I say this based on his record... Higher taxes, more government, misusing the power to tax leads to government moving into the role of some believing that government then has to take care of us. And government kind of moving into the role as the other half of our family, making decisions for us. Now, they do this in other countries where the people are not free. Let us fight for what is right. John McCain and I, we will put our trust in you."

How much longer do we have to listen to this ill-informed woman spout nonsense about subjects which elude her intellectual grasp? The thought of her being anywhere near the president's office is bone-chilling.

Talented musicians on the streets of Barcelona

Javier van Velthoven plays his guitar near the Cathedral in Barcelona, Spain. His haunting melodies linger in the stone-walled alleys and passageways surrounding the cathedral. I was so impressed with Javier's guitar skills, I bought a CD. It contains Javier's beautiful interpretations of Francisco Tarrega, Fernando Sor, Antonio Rubira, Issac Albeniz and Manuel de Falla, among others. His version of Albeniz's Asturias is magnificent! I could listen to Javier for hours.

8.G, a group of young musicians in Barcelona, has a Latin/Carribean sound not unlike the Buena Vista Social Club. I also bought their CD, containing music both danceable and romantic that makes me wish I were still in Spain.

Meanwhile, an American artist is set to create an enormous portrait of Sen. Barack Obama on the beach at Barcelona.

Taking the edge off campaign negativity

Feeling blue about the nasty antics of the American presidential campaign? Unless you're in Barcelona, Spain, you won't be able to take advantage of special "happy pills" (above and below). But you can go to Bob Geiger's website for hard-hitting political cartoons.

On a more serious note, David Sirota at Truthdig writes about McCain banking on a confederacy of dunces, with his ridiculous talk of socialism. And a group of communication scholars has called on John McCain to stop his negative campaigning.  “The purposeful dissemination of messages that a communicator knows to be false and inflammatory is unethical. It is that simple,” the statement says. Think the McCain camp will pay any attention? That's about as likely as Palin saying she's not wearing the $150,000 wardrobe paid for by the Republican National Committee. Oh wait, she already said that! Even though her boss defended the purchases, saying "she needed clothes."

Well the important thing to remember is it's not what someone else pays for us to wear, it's what's inside that counts. And Palin's to-the-right-of-Cheney political philosophy is much scarier than her wardrobes, both designer and Wal-Mart.  Some racist supporters who attend McCain-Palin rallies are pretty scary too.

And Palin hasn't a clue about the importance of fruit fly research. But Biochemicalsoul sets her straight. Richard Wolffe of Newsweek chimes in, "This is the most mindless, ignorant, uninformed comment that we have seen from Governor Palin so far and there's been a lot of competition for that prize."

Scroll down the page for two more posts today.

Bush asks justice department to intervene in Ohio votes!

Uh, hello - Anybody home? Are the watchdogs sleeping? Because Bush's order is not only unethical, it violates DOJ rules!

From Rick Hasen at ElectionLawBlog:

“Roll Call offers this important report, which begins: "President Bush is asking the Justice Department to look into whether 200,000 Buckeye State poll-goers must use provisional ballots on Election Day because their names do not match state databases." Wow. Here is what I said earlier this week: ‘The idea that the DOJ would get involved in the Ohio election now to force Sec. Brunner to produce the mismatch list on voter fraud grounds seems remote. The political uproar would be deafening.’”

As Alan Boswell of Election Protection notes, where is the political uproar??!!

Politicized voter fraud investigations were at the center of the U.S. Attorney scandal that led to the resignation of Alberto Gonzales. Nevertheless, the DOJ has announced a series of investigations – in multiple states - into voting fraud allegations. These unusually aggressive investigations raise serious questions about whether DOJ is engaged in politically-motivated activities once again, violating both their own rules and Michael Mukasey’s Senate hearing promises of election impartiality. 

These investigations are counter to DOJ’s own rules and to Attorney General Mukasey’s testimony before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on July 9, 2008. These facts, along with the climate of the election and the US attorney scandal raise important questions about the timing of these investigations; investigations that are unlikely to result in prosecution in the next 10 days.

Responsibility of US Attorneys

On voting and election issues, U.S. Attorneys have a dual responsibility in protecting civil rights and pursuing criminal offenses. Long-established guidelines dictate this delicate balance to ensure that the Department’s formidable powers are not misused, in an attempt to influence the outcomes of elections. 

On December 7, 2006, the White House forced seven U.S. Attorneys to resign.  The inability of then-Attorney General Alberto Gonzales to explain this purge led directly to his resignation.  The September 2008 report by Department of Justice Inspector General Glenn Fine documented that several of the purged U.S. Attorneys earlier had been criticized by Republican members of Congress, who complained that their allegations of voter fraud had not been pursued to their satisfaction. 

In 2007, after the firings scandal was reported, the Department of Justice published a new edition of its rules for handling election crime investigations.  One of the bedrock principles in this revised manual, as well as in earlier versions of the manual, is that the Department’s investigations must avoid influencing election outcomes. General Mukasey testified to this before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 9, 2008.

With just ten days remaining before the election, there are multiple reports that US Attorneys and the FBI are engaging in election-related investigations in several states, including presidential battleground states. These investigations - and the publicity surrounding them - conflict with the Department of Justice’s own rules and General Mukasey’s Congressional testimony.

The investigations

Little more than two weeks out from Election Day, there are multiple reports of active FBI investigations into alleged voter fraud in several states, many of them pivotal to the election:

·      On October 7, state agents raided the offices of ACORN in Las Vegas, Nevada with press coverage citing the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office providing information for the investigation.

·       On October 16, an Associated Press report receiving disclosed that two anonymous “senior law  enforcement official[s]” had confirmed the existence of an FBI investigation into ACORN’s activities in “several states” and “around the nation.” 

·        New Mexico – On October 10, FBI agents met with employees of the Bernalillo County Clerk’s Office to discuss the status of about 1,400 voter registrations allegedly suspected to be fraudulent.

·        West Virginia – After finding and reporting what she suspected to be several hundred invalid voter registrations in late September, Secretary of State Kathy Ireland asked authorities to investigate. As of October 22, she reported to the Associated Press that FBI and US Postal Inspectors' investigations were ongoing.

Violating DOJ’s own rules

DOJ’s 2007 guidelines state its policy on the timing of criminal investigations related to elections and voting. Central to this policy is recognition that investigations themselves may impact the outcome of elections.  According to its own manual the general policy of the DOJ is “Prosecution, Not Intervention.” The following excerpts are from the Federal Prosecution of Election Offenses, Seventh Edition:

·       “Because the federal prosecutor’s function in the area of election fraud is not primarily preventative, any criminal investigation by the Department must be conducted in a way that minimizes the likelihood that the investigation itself may become a factor in the election.”

·        “The mere fact that a criminal investigation is being conducted may impact upon the adjudication of election litigation and contests in state courts…Accordingly, it is the general policy of the Department not to conduct overt investigations, including interviews with individual voters, until after the outcome of the election allegedly affected by the fraud is certified.

·         “…deterrence (of fraud) is achieved by public awareness of the Department’s prosecutive interest in, and prosecution of, election fraud – not through interference with the process itself.”

The "Don't Write" journal winner

The winner of the drawing for Jen Lee's journal "Don't Write" is Graciel at Evenstar Art. The lovely Jen Lee will send the journal directly from New York to the lucky winner.

Thanks to all those who participated in the giveaway. I enjoyed reading your one-sentence responses about why you write. Even though you didn't win, you still have a chance to purchase "Don't Write" at Jen's website.

You might also be interested in Jen's just-released Solstice: Stories of Light in the Dark audio CD. Go here to learn more.

Meanwhile, keep writing! Don't let anyone stop you from using your voice.

Sad, but true

"Stress" sign on building, Barcelona, Spain.

I don't know about you, but I can hardly wait until this election is over. Even Joe McCain, John McCain's brother is getting cranky, calling 911 emergency twice, just because he was stuck in traffic. These stories are unbelievable; sadly, they're all true.

Chilling: "Another wink and nod from Sarah Palin."

Palin's makeup artist was paid $22,000 for the first two weeks of October! 

Desperate Republicans send a private investigator to try to intimidate New Mexico voters.

The Independent: The Picture that Shames Italy.

This is a charming, feel-good short advertisement that contains a little history of England.

And if you haven't read those brazen firecrackers Margaret and Helen, I urge you to drop everything and visit them NOW!

Much ado about nothing. But the McCain campaign fueled the fire.

Antoni Gaudi: Form and function

Rooftop chimneys, Casa Batllo, Passeig de Gracia, Barcelona, Spain. For more photos of Gaudi's architectural gems, check back this weekend.

Curved chimneys and ventilation ducts on the rooftop terrace at Casa Batllo.

Four chimneys, decorated in glazed ceramic tile.

A ringing endorsement for Obama

An excerpt from the New York Times editorial "Barack Obama for president:"

"Hyperbole is the currency of presidential campaigns, but this year the nation’s future truly hangs in the balance.

"The United States is battered and drifting after eight years of President Bush’s failed leadership. He is saddling his successor with two wars, a scarred global image and a government systematically stripped of its ability to protect and help its citizens — whether they are fleeing a hurricane’s floodwaters, searching for affordable health care or struggling to hold on to their homes, jobs, savings and pensions in the midst of a financial crisis that was foretold and preventable.

"As tough as the times are, the selection of a new president is easy. After nearly two years of a grueling and ugly campaign, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois has proved that he is the right choice to be the 44th president of the United States.

"Mr. Obama has met challenge after challenge, growing as a leader and putting real flesh on his early promises of hope and change. He has shown a cool head and sound judgment. We believe he has the will and the ability to forge the broad political consensus that is essential to finding solutions to this nation’s problems.

"In the same time, Senator John McCain of Arizona has retreated farther and farther to the fringe of American politics, running a campaign on partisan division, class warfare and even hints of racism. His policies and worldview are mired in the past. His choice of a running mate so evidently unfit for the office was a final act of opportunism and bad judgment that eclipsed the accomplishments of 26 years in Congress.

"Given the particularly ugly nature of Mr. McCain’s campaign, the urge to choose on the basis of raw emotion is strong. But there is a greater value in looking closely at the facts of life in America today and at the prescriptions the candidates offer. The differences are profound.

"Mr. McCain offers more of the Republican every-man-for-himself ideology, now lying in shards on Wall Street and in Americans’ bank accounts. Mr. Obama has another vision of government’s role and responsibilities.

"In his convention speech in Denver, Mr. Obama said, “Government cannot solve all our problems, but what it should do is that which we cannot do for ourselves: protect us from harm and provide every child a decent education; keep our water clean and our toys safe; invest in new schools and new roads and new science and technology.”

"Since the financial crisis, he has correctly identified the abject failure of government regulation that has brought the markets to the brink of collapse."

The Economy

"The American financial system is the victim of decades of Republican deregulatory and anti-tax policies. Those ideas have been proved wrong at an unfathomable price, but Mr. McCain — a self-proclaimed “foot soldier in the Reagan revolution” — is still a believer.

"Mr. Obama sees that far-reaching reforms will be needed to protect Americans and American business.

"Mr. McCain talks about reform a lot, but his vision is pinched. His answer to any economic question is to eliminate pork-barrel spending — about $18 billion in a $3 trillion budget — cut taxes and wait for unfettered markets to solve the problem.

"Mr. Obama is clear that the nation’s tax structure must be changed to make it fairer. That means the well-off Americans who have benefited disproportionately from Mr. Bush’s tax cuts will have to pay some more. Working Americans, who have seen their standard of living fall and their children’s options narrow, will benefit. Mr. Obama wants to raise the minimum wage and tie it to inflation, restore a climate in which workers are able to organize unions if they wish and expand educational opportunities.

"Mr. McCain, who once opposed President Bush’s tax cuts for the wealthy as fiscally irresponsible, now wants to make them permanent. And while he talks about keeping taxes low for everyone, his proposed cuts would overwhelmingly benefit the top 1 percent of Americans while digging the country into a deeper fiscal hole..."

Read more here.

It's up to us

Speaking Wednesday in Richmond, Virginia, Sen. Barack Obama talked about our responsibilites as Americans, united for change:

"There are no real or fake parts of this country. We are not separated by the pro-America and anti-America parts of this nation – we all love this country, no matter where we live or where we come from. There are patriots who supported this war in Iraq and patriots who opposed it; patriots who believe in Democratic policies and those who believe in Republican policies.

"The men and women from Virginia and all across America who serve on our battlefields may be Democrats and Republicans and Independents, but they have fought together and bled together and some died together under the same proud flag. They have not served a Red America or a Blue America – they have served the United States of America.

"We have always been at our best when we've had leadership that called us to look past our differences and come together as one nation, as one people; leadership that rallied this entire country to a common purpose – to a higher purpose. And I am running for President of the United States of America because that is the country we need to be right now.

"This country and the dream it represents are being tested in a way that we haven't seen in nearly a century. And future generations will judge ours by how we respond to this test. Will they say that this was a time when America lost its way and its purpose? When we allowed the same divisions and fear tactics and our own petty differences to plunge this country into a dark and painful recession?

"Or will they say that this was another one of those moments when America overcame? When we battled back from adversity by recognizing that common stake that we have in each other's success?

"This is one of those moments. I realize you're cynical and fed up with politics. I understand that you're disappointed and even angry with your leaders. You have every right to be. But despite all of this, I ask of you what's been asked of the American people in times of trial and turmoil throughout our history. I ask you to believe – to believe in yourselves, in each other, and in the future we can build together."

Barack Obama for president. Let's make our voices heard at the polls.

Photo of an early 20th-century directional sign, The Ballastone Inn, Savannah, Ga.

Chez les filles

It was a lovely surprise to get a message from Roberta Pichet at the popular French website Chez les filles, asking to use one of my photographs from the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Visit Chez les filles for many fabulous French blogs, as well as blogs of Paris-based expats like me. You'll find Paris Parfait in the À Paris section. Merci bien, Roberta!

À Paris

Des filles capitales

En direct de la ville-lumière, Tara l’Américaine fait son récit du Paris Parfait. Mention spéciale pour le reportage sur les chapeaux du Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe 2008 !

Catharine est venue d’Angleterre dans l’espoir de trouver à Paris l’inspiration et la matière pour écrire un livre. Son Embrouillamini s’en fait l’écho.

Marie, elle, est française et parisienne d’adoption. Aujourd’hui journaliste, elle a appris à aimer la capitale et a créé un blog pour partager ce qu’elle aime dans la fascinante cité. Suivez le guide Inside Paris !

Nos recommandés
Entendu à Paris
Day in Paris
Petite Anglaise
My Paris for you
Polly-vous français?

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Speaking of chapeaux, I had an email today from someone sponsoring the "Chapeau Blog Awards." Doesn't seem to be a prize for their money-making scheme: they charge an entry fee of $195 to $275! Uh, thanks, but no thanks, as a certain governor might say.

Scroll down the page for two additional posts today.

Frontier girl

Shop window, Barcelona, Spain. This mannequin's hat with a fox tale reminded me of something Sarah Palin might wear when she's out hunting moose or chasing wolves. Then again, now that the Alaska governor has had a taste of expensive designer fashion, she might not like that frontier (albeit upscale frontier) look.

Of course, John McCain once said campaign funds should not be used for "inherently personal purposes," such as "clothing purchases." "...I do not believe the general public is aware of how their campaign contributions are being used," McCain said. "I think it would be fair to say that if they did, they would be outraged and well they should be." Read more about his principled stance - in 1993 - here. Now that it's 2008, McCain seems to have abandoned such notions.

Visit my friend Tangobaby for her brilliant post: "Putting fresher, prettier faces on the McCain campaign."

What not to wear to the polls

In early voting or on Election Day, voters may want to cover-up their “Barack-Solid as a Rock-Obama” and “Palin Power” t-shirts. In many states, laws are unclear on whether voters can wear campaign paraphernalia in polling places. Though there are First Amendment concerns about preventing Americans from expressing their political choices, it may be easiest for voters to cover up t-shirts, buttons or other apparel that supports or opposes a candidate or an initiative.

According to Election Protection, not only do these restrictions vary from state to state, the laws are often vague and open to interpretation. Poll workers often have a hard time determining what activity is prohibited. Even if you live in a state that allows voters to wear political gear inside a polling place, a confused or inadequately-trained poll worker may try to stop you from entering the polling place to vote.

During the 2008 primary season, several voters called the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline confused by their local laws. Patsy, an Indiana voter, went to her polling place clad in a candidate’s hat and t-shirt and was immediately stopped by a poll worker. While Patsy was ultimately able to vote, the disruption for her and others in her polling place could be avoided by erring on the side of caution.

“While there are clear First Amendment issues with not wearing political paraphernalia of your choice, we urge voters to err on the side of caution to ensure that their ballot is able to be cast,” said Jonah Goldman, director of the National Campaign for Fair Elections at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “The short term solution to this needlessly confusing patchwork of state laws is more adequate poll worker training so that laws are properly enforced. In the long-term, we need clear national standards that reduce the barriers that people face when heading to the polls.”

With more than 125 million voters projected for this year, mistakes are inevitable. Election Protection offers a free and nonpartisan hotline – 1-866-OUR VOTE (1-866-687-8683) and 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA (1-888-83-9-8682) and online at www.866ourvote.org for voters who have questions or encounter problems when voting. Experts are standing by to help between now and Election Day.

Don't shoot the messenger

"Flying saucers" illuminate the lobby, Hotel Rey Juan Carlos I, Barcelona, Spain.

In one of those amusing "lost in translation" moments, the guest services menu at the hotel includes a cryptic reference to the "World Press." "We dispose of a wide range of international press. Check the form hanging on the door of your room to make the order. For more information, please contact the Concierge."

Uh oh...Sounds rather ominous for visiting reporters. Although I must say the hotel is quite a lovely place, with amazing views!

For two additional posts today, scroll down the page.

Temperatures rising

Centigrade thermometer, Barcelona, Spain.

Voting problems continue in Ohio

The same-day voter-registration window has ended in Ohio, but legal battles persist. The Republican Hamilton County prosecutor Joseph T. Deters subpoenaed the county elections board for the records of 266 new voters who cast absentee ballots during the week-long election-day registration period. Deters claimed there were problems with addresses and identities.  A website breach, a state supreme court recusal and gubernatorial accusations of “scare tactics” also have been reported.

Update Wednesday evening: The various disputes over voting in Ohio are turning vicious and ugly, with death threats being lobbed at the Secretary of State’s Office. Luckily, a truce has been declared – for now – in the massive voter-registration flap that would require a double-checking of new registrants. Summitt County is taking matters into its own hands – the election board has reviewed and rejected hundreds of new voter registrations for a variety of reasons.

“Fraud" fight

Democrats and Republicans are accusing one another of encouraging voter fraud. House and Senate Judiciary Committee members – Republican and Democrat –  have issued letters demanding investigations into alleged intimidation or fraud. An actual arrest for voter fraud has occurred in California, where a Republican man fraudulently registered in his boyhood home to meet a law requiring signature gatherers in his company were registered in the state.

Early voting; early problems

Many West Virginians were outraged when they attempted to cast an early ballot but found their choice “jumped” to another candidate on the touch-screen, prompting officials to urge voters to re-check their selections before submitting their ballots.

With early voting open in the majority of states, problems and long lines have already begun. In Florida, many waited 30 minutes to an hour to cast a ballot, in part due to mechanical glitches. Poll workers in some spots went out of their way to make sure the waits were comfortable.

Voter deception hits the internet

As deceitful flyers and robocalls have given way to false emails and websites aimed at confusing and intimidating voters, Election Protection and its allies are addressing the issue head on. On Monday a report was released by Common Cause, The Century Foundation and The Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, entitled Deceptive Practices 2.0: Legal And Policy Responses. Read more here.

Bucking the trend

Two of Colorado’s biggest counties – Larimer and Jefferson – have been accepting voter registration forms, in opposition to Secretary of State Mike Coffman’s ruling to disqualify them based on the applicants’ failure to check a small box.

Ready, set, vote!

In Texas, early voting has begun. Officials are predicting record turnout and problems for newly- registered voters, due to paperwork backlogs from the influx of new voters.

Feds to watch polls

As part of the Department of Justice’s nationwide Election Day Program, voting in several U.S. districts will be monitored by U.S. Attorneys, as well as special agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Northern Florida is one such district, as are both federal districts of Wisconsin and the states of Kentucky, Maryland and Tennessee.

Voter deception 2.0

Fears of internet voter deception have been stoked over the past few months by erroneous emails and website hacks. Virginia is the latest e-victim. as a massive letter-writing campaign crashed e-mail servers in Fairfax County, Richmond and several other jurisdictions. The crash caused a critical, nearly day-long interruption in sending absentee ballots via e-mail to overseas and military voters.

If you encounter problems in casting your vote at the polls, please contact Election Protection at 1-866-OUR-VOTE (1-866-687-8683).

Scroll down the page for an additional post today.

Venom-packed emails and fighting back

Be afraid. Be very afraid. The Hate Talk Express is speeding down the track, trying to distort and suppress truth and skewer reason. On Tuesday I received another email filled with hateful nonsense about Obama - lies that have been thoroughly debunked by numerous independent groups and fact-checking organisations. The message was sent to my business account, from a high school friend's second husband. I've never met him and didn't know he was a right-wing Conservative. And he apparently didn't know I have a blog and am an Obama supporter.

After reading the innuendo-strewn missive, I wrote him back, saying such idiotic allegations have been disproved. I directed him to some fact-check websites. I told him "I'm proudly voting for Obama, because he's the best man for the job. And all the smear campaigns in the world can't change that fact." After sending my response, I made another online donation to Obama for America. So there!

Speaking of which, the McCain campaign's conference call Monday with reporters called for transparency about individual donors making small donations. I think the Obama campaign's transparency is not an issue. Last week, Obama campaign headquarters in Chicago phoned me in Paris, asking for my passport number to verify I'm a US citizen. Because, unlike the previous donations I've made online to the campaign, the last one (before Tuesday) was made via my friend Tangobaby's Movie Marathon in San Francisco, a fund-raiser for Obama. As I couldn't attend the event in person, I sent money via Paypal for a donation in my name. Hence the Obama campaign's call to confirm that I was an American citizen abroad, as it is illegal to accept donations from non-American residents of other countries.

Bob Herbert writes in the New York Times about the Republicans' attempts to suppress votes. An excerpt:

"...Even better than demonizing opponents is the more powerful and direct act of taking the vote away from their opponents’ supporters. The Republican Party has made strenuous efforts in recent years to prevent Democrats from voting and to prevent their votes from being properly counted once they’ve been cast.

"Which brings me to the phony Acorn scandal.

"John McCain, who placed his principles in a blind trust once the presidential race heated up, warned the country during the presidential debate last week that Acorn, which has been registering people to vote by the hundreds of thousands, was “on the verge of maybe perpetrating one of the greatest frauds in voter history.”

"It turns out that a tiny percentage of these new registrations are bogus, with some of them carrying ludicrous names like Mickey Mouse. Republicans have tried to turn this into a mighty oak of a scandal, with Mr. McCain thundering at the debate that it “may be destroying the fabric of democracy.”

"Please. The Times put the matter in perspective when it said in an editorial that Acorn needs to be more careful with some aspects of its voter-registration process. It needs to do a better job selecting canvassers, among other things.

“But,” the editorial added, “for all of the McCain campaign’s manufactured fury about vote theft (and similar claims from the Republican Party over the years) there is virtually no evidence — anywhere in the country, going back many elections — of people showing up at the polls and voting when they are not entitled to.”

"Two important points need to be made here. First, the reckless attempt by Senator McCain, Sarah Palin and others to fan this into a major scandal has made Acorn the target of vandals and a wave of hate calls and e-mail. Acorn staff members have been threatened and sickening, murderous comments have been made about supporters of Barack Obama. (Senator Obama had nothing to do with Acorn’s voter-registration drives.)

"Second, when it comes to voting, the real threat to democracy is the nonstop campaign by the G.O.P. and its supporters to disenfranchise American citizens who have every right to cast a ballot. We saw this in 2000. We saw it in 2004. And we’re seeing it again now.

"In Montana, the Republican Party challenged the registrations of thousands of legitimate voters based on change-of-address information available from the Post Office. These specious challenges were made — surprise, surprise — in Democratic districts. Answering the challenges would have been a wholly unnecessary hardship for the voters, many of whom were students or members of the armed forces.

"In the face of widespread public criticism (even the Republican lieutenant governor weighed in), the party backed off.

"That sort of thing is widespread. In one politically crucial state after another — in Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, you name it — the G.O.P. has unleashed foot soldiers whose insidious mission is to make the voting process as difficult as possible — or, better yet, impossible — for citizens who are believed to favor Democrats.

"For Senator McCain to flip reality on its head and point to an overwhelmingly legitimate voter-registration effort as a “threat to the fabric of democracy” is a breathtaking exercise in absurdity..."

• Meanwhile, John McCain appears delusional; insists his campaign is about the economy, yet talks about Bill Ayers and other stupid distractions.
• After two Republican congresspersons - both McCain supporters - make abhorrent statements, they lie about what they said - even though the video evidence is clear for all to see.
• Keith Olbermann calls McCain out for his silence, as Republicans try to inflame hatred against those who disagree with their narrow-minded "base."
• Sarah Palin still doesn't understand the vice president's responsibilities, as evidenced in her incorrect response to a third-grader's question. But she does know how to get the State of Alaska to pay for her children's travel expenses! Also, she knows how to shop, while someone else is paying.
  

Looking for a socialist? Uh, that would be Bush.

McCain and Palin, desperately trying to find smokescreens to detract from their lack of ideas, keep casting aspersions about Obama having socialist tendencies. Not only are their claims ridiculous, they're dead wrong. It wasn't Obama who nationalized America's banks: that would be the sociaist George W. Bush and McCain as his biggest supporter. I've said it before: Bush + McCain = More of the same. What a shame, McCain.

Barcelona beauty

Front view of Antoni Gaudi's Casa Batllo's crowning glory, shot with a telephoto lens from across the street. Doesn't the top section look like something out of a fairy tale? Maybe a gingerbread house?

The exterior of Casa Batllo, one of Gaudi's magnificent Barcelona beauties. The curved building on Passeig de Gracia is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Some Casa Batllo windows are egg-shaped.

Juliet balcony close-up.

View of street - including a construction site - from an open window in Casa Batllo's main salon.

Curves at the top of the windows, opening onto Passeig de Gracia.

The gorgeous light fixture in the main salon at Casa Batllo (glimpsed through the window in the second photo, above). Check back later for more photos of Casa Batllo and other Gaudi architectural marvels.

A journal and a giveaway

Photograph of Jen Lee by Jen Lemen.

Recently, I posted Jen Lee's powerful poem, "Don't Write."  As the poem received such a positive response, Jen kindly offered to provide a copy of her journal "Don't Write: A Reluctant Journal," to a lucky reader.

To participate in the giveaway, leave a one-sentence comment saying why you write. That's it! My charming assistant will draw the winning name this Saturday, Oct. 25th.

The journal will be shipped on December 1, directly from Jen in New York.  Her new batch of pre-orders will also ship Dec. 1. Don't Write: A Reluctant Journal is already in its second printing!

Just in case you're not the lucky winner - or you can't wait until December - you can pre-order Jen's journals here. If you're like me and can't bear to part with your journal, why not order extra copies for holiday gifts?

Visit Jen's blog here. And keep writing!

Bridging the gap

Bridge over narrow street, Barcelona, Spain.

We are all Americans. I don't care if you're a Democrat or a Republican. We may disagree on fundamental issues, but each of us is entitled to our own opinion. What I do care about is whether or not you're an extremist, who foments division, hatred and even violence.  Such ill-advised behavior seems to be on show too often these days, whether it's the McCarthy-like rantings of a Minnesota congresswoman calling for an investigation into whether members of Congress are anti-American; Sarah Palin asserting some parts of the country are more "pro-America" than others or a McCain campaign spokeswoman musing about "the real Virginia."

This divisive talk is deliberately designed to stir culture wars and incite bad behavior in remarkably intolerant people. It's irresponsible, like shouting "Fire!" in a crowded theatre. Right on cue, several people spout racist and even fascist taunts, while waiting in line to enter McCain-Palin rallies. Once inside the venue, many seem to adopt a mob-mentality, brandishing hand-lettered signs with venemous slogans, then turning their misguided anger on the press. I wonder if these people watched videos of themselves shouting baseless accusations, they'd realise how wrong-headed and ignorant they appear. Are they proud of their outbursts of false bravado? Do they think they are model citizens, setting good examples for their children to emulate?

Happily, the U.S. Constitution provides for freedom of speech. Civil discourse and dissent, yes. But hateful rants leading to violent acts? No.

And the Republican attempts to intimidate voters really are beyond the pale. Don't let false rumors or fake or misleading mailings stop you from voting. In this election,stand up for your rights and make your voices heard. It's the only way we can salvage what's left of our once-proud democracy and move towards a brighter future. Our children and their children deserve better. America deserves better.

"It is not enough to understand, or to see clearly. The future will be shaped in the arena of human activity, by those willing to commit their minds and their bodies to the task." - Robert F. Kennedy 1925-1968.

"Bridging the Gap" is cross-posted at Open Salon and RedRoom.com.

Make sure your vote counts!

Republicans are trying to suppress votes; don't let them!

Voter registration application backlogs

The unprecedented registration and get-out-the-vote efforts by both parties, along with the historic nature of this election, promise to elicit a record number of voters on Election Day. Mountains of new voter registrations are causing backlogs in voter data entry – which partisans are using as reasons to keep these applicants from making it onto the rolls, as we’ve just seen in Ohio.  Backlogs often force local election offices to send out verification and polling place information late or not at all.

In Colorado  election officials are struggling to verify thousands of voter registration forms before October 20 when early voting opens. In Georgia a week ago, in DeKalb County about 30,000 registrations were sitting in boxes waiting to be entered.  In New York, in Dutchess County, officials are telling voters  if their backlogged registrations aren’t processed in time, they should request a court order to vote. In Alabama, a controversy is raging over who can be registered, contributing to the backlog of requests.

Allegations of voter registration fraud

The recent controversy over ACORN ‘s voter registration program emphasizes the critical need for a comprehensive system to handle the crush of registration applications.  Effective systems are currently in place for flagging duplicate and ineligible applications, but burdens created by this deadline-driven process could be eliminated with smart, federal voter registration reform.

Opinion writers and editorial boards across the country have weighed in on the issue, skeptical of the partisan nature of the allegations.  Many offer a pragmatic approach to dealing with these accusations. Read articles in the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, GateHouse News Service and the Baltimore Sun.

No match, no vote

Under our current patchwork of election laws, each state (and sometimes each county) has a different way of comparing voter lists to state databases to make sure rolls are “clean” and updated, These matching requirements could mean that a simple misspelling or misplaced hyphen could knock tens of thousands of eligible voters off the rolls.

In Florida a controversial “no-match” law has taken effect, calling into question the validity of several thousand voters’ registrations filed after September 8.  In Ohio, the United States Supreme Court rejected attempts by the Ohio Republican Party to require that Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner  provide access to a database of voters whose registration information does not match state records. The decision protects 200,000 newly registered Ohioans. However, Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters, John McCain’s Southwest Ohio campaign chairman, has subpoenaed registration records for about 40 percent of the 671 voters who registered and cast a ballot between Sept. 30, when early voting began and Oct. 6, the deadline for voter registration.

The Social Security Administration has sent requests to six states – Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio – asking that they investigate whether improper social security number checks are being run on newly-registered voters.

In Arizona, a disabled veteran filed a lawsuit saying he was deprived of his right to vote last year because the military ID he presented did not include his address. Although he should have been allowed to file a provisional ballot, poll workers forbid him from doing so.

Poorly-designed application forms  

About 6,400 new voters in Colorado may not be allowed to cast regular ballots on Election Day, because they failed to check a box on a voter registration form. Voting rights groups have asked the state to accept registration applications that contain all necessary identifying information, but lack a checkmark in a superfluous box.  Currently, the state considers these applications “incomplete.”

Earlier this month, the Ohio Supreme Court ordered Democratic Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to reverse her ruling and direct election boards to accept absentee ballots that lacked one checkmark on ballot applications sent from Republican John McCain’s campaign.

Purging

The true impact of purging legitimate voters from the polls may not be known until people are turned away on Election Day, but purging already is taking place. For example, in Michigan, a federal judge ordered Secretary of State Terry Lynn Land to restore more than 1,500 Michigan voters to the rolls who were illegally purged, based on undeliverable mail or because they applied for a driver’s license in another state.

In Georgia, a coalition of civil rights groups filed a lawsuit against Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel, claiming her office is possibly purging thousands of voters, based on challenges to citizenship. Federal law prohibits such activity less than 90 days before the election.

Deceptive practices

Following allegations that a Michigan Republican county chairman said the party will challenge the voting status of homeowners facing foreclosure, officials in Ohio, Maryland, Illinois, Nevada and elsewhere were forced to quickly  reassure their constituents that foreclosure does not exclude voters from participating in the election. In Indiana, Marion County GOP Chairman Tom John said he would not rule out challenging votes of individuals whose homes had been foreclosed.

Students are also the victims of misinformation and deceptive practices. Students at Drexel University in Pennsylvania reported seeing flyers around campus warning students that police would be at the polls on Election Day, arresting anyone with a prior offense, including unpaid parking tickets. Old Dominion University students registered to vote in Virginia received questionnaires from Norfolk election officials asking for tax, driver’s license and vehicle registration information. This came on the heels of similar misinformation by the local election board in Blacksburg, which warned that Virginia Tech students could lose scholarships and impact their parents’ tax status if they registered at their campus address.

Lack of standard rules confuse voters

Georgia residents who mailed in their voter registration applications received official letters that incorrectly stated ID requirements.

According to Election Protection, these are just a few examples of problems facing voters in the days leading up to Election Day. For more information, or if you would like to speak to a voting rights expert, please contact Debra Greenspan at 202-741-5573 or Stacie Miller at 202-662-8317.

Also, The Miami Herald offers tips to combat vote fraud tricks.

Meanwhile, the Obama camp connects the Department of Justice's Acorn probe to the US Attorneys firing scandal. Read more here. Also see Keith Olbermann's report about the collaborative effort among the White House, Republicans and the McCain-Palin campaign to suppress voters' rights in the presidential election.

With all these difficulties in exercising one's right to vote, it's a wonder the US is ever called upon as an independent observer in "free and fair elections" in other countries. Do you think the UN and other countries will observe our election for fairness?

If you encounter problems in registering to vote or in casting your vote at the polls, please contact Election Protection at 1-866-OUR-VOTE (1-866-687-8683).

P.S. Here's a story to make all "real Americans" (as opposed to the "fake Americans" the McCain campaign keep discussing) proud. Photo of Sen. Barack Obama at rally Saturday in St. Louis - attended by 100,000 people! - courtesy of Daily Kos.

Barcelona bride

Shop window, Passeig de Gracia, Barcelona.

For more Barcelona photos, go here, here and here. And plenty more still to come!

W's legacy?

La Pedrera's undulating beauty

Iron decorative trim on balcony railings, as viewed from the interior of La Pedrera, Barcelona. The windows overlook Passeig de Gracia.  For photos of Antoni Gaudi's sculptural chimneys, balustrades and ventilation towers on the building's roof terrace, go here.

La Pedrera's main doorway, viewed from the foyer.

Plants in an interior courtyard connecting the two main buildings of Casa Mila, or La Pedrera.

Elaborate iron grillwork on small exterior balconies at La Pedrera.

View of La Pedrera's exterior.

For three other posts today - including another about La Pedrera - scroll down the page. Check back this weekend for more Barcelona photos.

Voter registration issues around the country

Restoring the vote

MICHIGAN: This week a federal judge ordered Michigan Secretary of State Terry Lynn Land to restore over 1,500 Michigan voters to the rolls. The ruling was that the voters were illegally purged, either as a result of their voter ID cards returned as undeliverable, or because they applied for a driver’s license in another state.

More record-breaking

NATIONAL: With early voting beginning across the country, officials are seeing record-breaking turnout in Illinois and Montana. Washington State officials predict the highest Election Day turnout in 60 years and Minnesota has seen new voter registrations skyrocket.

Straight talk on ACORN

NATIONAL: Read level-headed responses to allegations of voter fraud here, here, here and here.

Back to the future

OREGON: The Oregon State Senate’s rules committee has proposed an amendment to the Oregon Constitution that would allow Oregonians to register even on Election Day. Election Day registration was allowed in the state up until 1986, when voters instituted a 20-day pre-election cutoff for new registrants. The state legislature can consider this measure in January of 2009.

Fighting for their country and their vote

NATIONAL: According to data and reports by the Election Assistance Commission and the Pew Center on the States, only about 30 percent of overseas military ballots were tallied in the last federal election. For some soldiers, the mail-in absentee voting process may take up to 60 days from start to finish.

Ohio reversals

OHIO: BREAKING NEWS: The US Supreme Court has sided with Ohio's top elections official in a dispute with the state Republican Party over voter registrations. Today the justices  overruled a federal appeals court that had ordered Ohio's top elections official to do more to help counties verify voter eligibility.

Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, a Democrat, had faced a deadline of today to set up a system to provide local officials with names of newly-registered voters by outside groups such as ACORN. whose information did not match state records. Greene County Sherriff Gene Fischer withdrew his request for over 300 early voter registration forms,  following last week’s district court ruling. The district court initially sided with the GOP. Then a three-judge appeals panel overturned the district court. Next, the entire 6th Circuit Court of Appeals took up the case and upheld the district court. 

Republicans brought the lawsuit as part of a strategic effort to disqualify voters in swing states. Once  mismatches are identified, the process of trying to disqualify voters begins. By one estimate, one-third of the voters who registered this year in Ohio might have such mismatches - i.e. typographical errors - some 200,000 voters. 

Voter education effort

MICHIGAN: With record voter turnout expected, and with misinformation running rampant, the Michigan Department of Civil Rights is rolling out a massive voter education effort to run through Election Day. The advertising campaign will inform voters of their rights and dispel misinformation surrounding foreclosures, campaign paraphernalia and prior felony convictions.

Breaking all kinds of records

GEORGIA: Not only is Georgia breaking records for how many registrants whose citizenship it has asked the Social Security Administration to verify, there are many new voter registrations. In DeKalb County alone, about 30,000 registrations are waiting to be entered.

Information provided by Election Protection. If you encounter any problems in registering to vote or in casting your vote at the polls, please contact Election Protection at 1-866-OUR-VOTE (1-866-687-8683).

La Pedrera

Working chimneys on the rooftop of Casa Mila, Barcelona. The building was constructed in 1906-1912 by Antoni Gaudi, on the border then separating Barcelona from Gracia. The industrialist Pere Mila and his wife Roser Segimon lived on the main floor and turned the rest into apartments.

Gaudi built two blocks of apartment houses with independent entrances, arranged around large interior patios. The buildings share a single facade, with the structure resting on pillars, rather than weight-bearing walls. Gaudi's innovative design was lauded for both its functional and ornamental aspects, breaking with architectural styles of the period.

As Casa Mila's facade resembles carved rock, the locals nicknamed the building La Pedrera, meaning stone quarry. In 1984, UNESCO assigned Casa Mila its World Heritage status.

In 1986, Caixa Catalunya purchased the building and began restoration. In 1996, La Pedrera was opened to the public as a cultural center. Currently, it is headquarters to Caixa Catalunya's Social Work division, as well as four other foundations.

The terrace roof contains badalots (staircases), ventilation towers and chimneys. Some are covered with trencadis, or broken pieces of ceramic. The elements less visible from the street were simply roughcast and painted. The undulating ballustrades conform to the shape of the facade, as Gaudi sought harmony between the facade's rhythms and the roof'.

A curvaceous mosaic top to a stairwell.

A chimney stands like a lone sentinel on a corner of La Pedrera's terrace.

Check back later for more photos of La Pedrera and other Barcelona architectural wonders.

Out of ideas, McCain camp resorts to nasty robo calls

• Robo calls? Just hang up. Read the sad, sordid story of the McCain camp's ongoing machinations here. So much for John McCain's self-declared honor. He's certainly changed his tune.
• Sarah Palin is illegally using her Secret Service detail to keep reporters from talking to people attending her rallies - and thus preventing the press from identifying militants inciting the crowds.
• "Joe the Plumber" is actually a McCain friend linked to the Keating Five. Plus he owes back taxes!
• One of McCain's chief fund-raisers is accused of war profiteering.

The widely-respected New England Journal of Medicine slams McCain's health care ideas:

"...The choice facing health care professionals, like all Americans, is basic: Who deserves to be trusted with the stewardship of America's health care system? The McCain proposal violates the bedrock principle that major health policy reforms should first do no harm. It would risk the viability of employer-sponsored insurance and the welfare of chronically ill Americans in pell-mell pursuit of a radical vision of consumer-driven health care. Senator McCain's plan does not demonstrate the kind of judgment needed in a potential commander in chief of our health care system."

And it seems there's no end to racist actions by morons. As Sen. Barack Obama said at the debate Wednesday night, such negativity says more about the McCain campaign than it does about him.

It appears the Republicans are reduced to scraping the bottom of the barrel.

Bedazzled by Barcelona

Rooftop photo, Casa Batllo, Passeig de Gracia, Barcelona, Spain.

I am back from Barcelona, with about 600 photos of amazing art and architecture, including Antoni Gaudi's Modernism and Art Nouveau marvels. And I still haven't had a chance to tell you about my trip to Antwerp! Check back later for more photos and travel adventures.

A clear choice

Photo of 2008 presidential election ballot

After the final (thank goodness!) presidential debate, the choice for voters is clear. Do they want Sen. Barack Obama, who is cool,calm and collected with detailed plans to address the critical issues facing our country? Or do they prefer Sen. John McCain, who is visibly angry and agitated, while providing vague and misleading talking points; a man who either doesn't answer or changes the subject when he doesn't have a plan - or a clue?

McCain made preposterous claims that he can balance the budget in four years, but provided no details - because of course he hasn't figured out a workable plan.

If McCain voting against equal pay for equal work didn't already hurt his chances with women voters, I expect his sneering use of air quotes, mocking the "health of the mother," while discussing abortion sealed the deal. He didn't seem to know that Sarah Palin's baby has Down's Syndrome, not autism.

A volcano waiting to erupt

Also, what was with McCain repeatedly blinking,grimacing, laughing inappropriately, rolling his eyes, chopping the desk and even snorting? He seemed ready to explode with fury. Who wants a hothead making urgent decisions about war, or anything else for that matter? I think there's a reason McCain won't fully divulge his medical records and the American people have a right to know. After all, McCain's put us all at risk by selecting an unqualified governor - whose political leanings appear to be somewhere to the right of Dick Cheney - as his running mate.

McCain claimed Palin is a role model for women. Is he serious? Someone who yesterday stood in New Hampshire and called it "this great Northwest?" (And that's the least of her blunders. McCain seemed to have forgotten about Palin's abuse of power,lawbreaking and ethical violations in Alaska, as outlined in the Troopergate report.).

McCain kept repeating the same lies about Obama's tax plan - lies already debunked by independent economists, non-partisan fact checkers and even McCain's cheerleader Fox "News," as Obama pointed out. (See the calculator in my sidebar for how the Obama-Biden tax plan would affect you).

When forced to defend the negative tone of his campaign, McCain reacted like a petulant child. He said the campaign might have taken on a different tone,had Obama agreed to town hall meetings. McCain also defended the militant few shouting violent threats and racist slurs at his and Palin's campaign rallies, saying "Let me just say, categorically, I'm proud of the people that come to our rallies."

While McCain accused Obama of negative advertising, a recent study by the University of Wisconsin Advertising Project,showed 100% of McCain's ads have been negative. McCain tried to deflect the criticism, saying his campaign was all about the economy and creating jobs - a risible statment that made Obama smile and many viewers laugh out loud.

Health insurance

McCain talked about his so-called health insurance plan of giving a $5000 tax credit to every American "to get the insurance they want, wherever they go." Another example of just how clueless McCain is,as the average health plan costs $12,500, not $5,000. Further, many plans refuse coverage for those with pre-existing medical conditions.

As Obama pointed out, McCain neglected to mention that for the first time in history, he would tax employer-based health insurance plans. So much for that $5000 tax credit.

McCain got a bit of a shock, after claiming Obama's plan would place a burden on small business unable to provide health insurance for its employees. He cited "Joe the Plumber," as an example (one of the most annoying and repeated reference of the debate).

Obama: "I'm happy to talk to you, Joe, too, if you're out there. Here is your fine: Zero."

McCain interrupted: "Zero??"

Obama: "Zero. You won't pay a fine because as I said in our last debate and I'll repeat John, I exempt small businesses from the requirement for large businesses that can afford to provide health care to their employees who are not doing it. I exempt small businesses from having to pay into a kitty..."

Obama's plan would cut health insurance costs an average of $2500/year. He would open the Federal employee pool for Americans without employer-paid care. Obama's plan also would focus on preventive care, to reduce costs in the long run. Read more details here.

The US Chamber of Commerce supports Obama's plan and says McCain's plan would cause the unraveling of the health care system in the US.

"Children are our future"

McCain's plans for education appeared to be based on distributing vouchers in the Washington, D.C. area. He seemed uncertain how to help the rest of the country, other than fire underperforming teachers. One of the best lines of the debate came when Obama, reminded McCain that children are our future, not special interests, as McCain's chief economic adviser Douglas Holz-Eakin dismissively claimed (the same guy who said McCain invented the Blackberry).

Sadly, debate moderator Bob Scheiffer of CBS spent way too much time focusing on inane distractions fomented by the McCain campaign and too little time talking about serious issues confronting America. Obama confronted McCain's smears,denouncing his ridiculous guilt-by-association "connections" as petty, meaningless distractions.

"...Let me tell you who I associate with," Obama said. "On economic policy, I associate with Warren Buffett and former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker. If I'm interested in figuring out my foreign policy, I associate myself with my running mate, Joe Biden or with Dick Lugar, the Republican ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, or General Jim Jones, the former supreme allied commander of NATO.

"Those are the people, Democrats and Republicans, who have shaped my ideas and who will be surrounding me in the White House. And I think the fact that this has become such an important part of your campaign, Sen. McCain, says more about your campaign than it says about me."

Yes, Obama won all three debates and every poll - including one conducted by Fox "News" - reiterated that fact.

Excerpts from today's New York Times editorial:

"...It’s a shame that Mr. McCain hasn’t come up with policies that would actually help workers. Instead, he’s served up the same-old trickle-down theories and a government-is-wrong, markets-are-right fervor that helped create this economic disaster.

"Wednesday night’s debate was another chance for Mr. McCain to prove that he is ready to lead this country out of its deep economic crisis. But he had one answer to almost every economic question: cut taxes and government spending. Unfortunately, what Mr. McCain means is to cut taxes for the richest Americans and, inevitably, to reduce the kinds of government services that working Americans need more than ever.

"Mr. McCain also stuck to his campaign’s nasty tone. He could not let go of the “Joe the Plumber” parable, saying his opponent’s plan was “to take Joe’s money, give it to Senator Obama and let him spread the wealth around.” Mr. McCain then accused Barack Obama of engaging in the sort of “class warfare” that has, in fact, been a focus of his own campaign.

"In another astonishing exchange, Mr. McCain acted as though he was the truly aggrieved party, insisting that he had repudiated all of the attacks on Mr. Obama by surrogates and “some fringe people” at rallies. He didn’t mention that his running mate, Sarah Palin, is one of the loudest attackers and he certainly didn’t repudiate her absurd, repeated charge that Mr. Obama has been “palling around with terrorists.”

"Quite the opposite. Mr. McCain again raised Mr. Obama’s old and meaningless acquaintance with William Ayers, a violent, 1960s radical who served with Mr. Obama on charitable foundations. Mr. McCain ended up seeming angry and desperate.

"Mr. McCain’s biggest problem is that he has no big ideas for fixing the country’s problems. His speech on the economy this week was replete with seriously bad ones, starting with cutting the already very low capital gains tax in half. That won’t rescue the economy. What it will do is dig the government further into debt while making the current tax structure that rewards the rich even more unfair..."

Blog Action Day 2008: The scourge of poverty

A homeless person's stash near Place de Madeleine, Paris, one of the city's wealthiest commercial districts.

 

In the Mississippi Delta
children go to bed hungry
as their parents despair.

Living on minimum wage,
just trying to survive
now the factory's shut
and the money's run out.

 

Forced to rely on charity
and the kindness of strangers.
Trying to hang on,

living hand to mouth:
society's forgotten class.

Struggling to make ends meet
as more government programs cut.

Hard-working, honest people
trying to keep a roof over their heads,

food in their bellies
and their children in school.
Praying nobody gets sick;
health insurance is a luxury
they simply can't afford.

 

The car went last week;
couldn't keep up the payments
after the mill was mothballed:
a silent brooding sentinel,

waiting for a brighter day.

 

A day that will never come for their neighbor,

who shot himself in the Wal-Mart parking lot,

unable to face the indignity

of the bailiffs arriving

to auction the family farm,

where four generations worked the land

and earned community respect and recognition.

 

Unable to weep at the funeral,
his brother put his fist through the wall
of the county clerk's office

raging at the injustice
as news cameras whirred, recording the drama:
an ordinary life under extraordinary pressure,
no one ever should have to bear.

 

Helpless and nearly invisible

in a society that rewards achievement,

while shoving aside the needs of the poor.

No longer able to provide basic necessities

in the richest country on earth

where the government once served the people

with responsibility and decency.

 

In New Orleans

Katrina took their homes and jobs;

two years later

government assistance still thin on the ground

and home is a cot in a cousin's house.

Barbara Bush should see them now.*

On a New Mexico reservation

a group of rusty trailers
heat like a furnace in the desert sun
and the nearest job is a half-tank of gas away.

In Michigan, production is shipped overseas
and entire families are out of work,
out of benefits,
out of time.

Hard to hang on
hard to trust
hard to believe
this is America.

 

*Barbara Bush famously said that those who lost their homes in Hurricane Katrina were "doing very well now" in shelters in Houston and other cities.

Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Joe Biden have plans to assist the 37 million Americans currently living in poverty. Read their Blueprint for Change here.

Read other contributions to Blog Action Day here.

A dynamic duo at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe

Les belles femmes at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe October 5 at Hippodrome de Longchamp, Paris. A reader, Perrine Meillat, sent this photo after seeing my post about unusual hats at Longchamp. Merci bien, Perrine pour le photo charmant!

Barcelona, baby!

At the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe Sunday at Longchamp, this Scottish lad was being a "cheeky monkey," as the Brits say: pulling up his kilt for the photo. In the photo below, he and his mates are laughing like naughty children after the stunt.

Today I'm off for some laughs of my own - a few days of rest and relaxation in Barcelona! Tierra de calma. I intend to do very little other than see friends, indulge in a little Fino and tapas and wander around the city with my camera.

Will catch up with you next week, just in time for the Blog Action Day on Poverty. Won't you join us? Read all about it here.