Mom asks me about Acorn and I go nuts - email inside

This is such complete bullshit, it’s ridiculous.

Most simple thing you need to know – NOT A SINGLE VOTE HAS EVER BEEN CAST BY SOMEONE FALSELY REGISTERED BY ACORN.

Tell that to whatever tard is putting this nonsense in your ear.

Any fraud in terms of Acorn involved two rogue Acorn employees defrauding ACORN not the Federal Government and the American people.

These acorn staffers tried to inflate their “numbers” regarding how many new voters they had registered by turning in fake registrations. Do you know what happens when a not real person’s form is submitted to be registered? They don’t get to register.

For God sakes, this is why you have to put in the last four digits of your social or your driver’s license on your registration form. The County Board looks you up and compares your name to social security databases or driver’s license databases. Guess what? If you don’t EXIST, they don’t send you a registration card. Duh.

So Acorn gets defrauded by its staffers because 1) they don’t have SS databases and can’t determine that these are bad registrations and 2) they are *required by law* to pass every voter registration they receive to the election board *even if they suspect the registration is bad*. But the Voter Rolls don’t get defrauded because that’s where the fraud ends. No actual registration takes place.

This is so fucking stupid it outdistances most of the other stupidity.

for the explanation, this needs to be PLASTERED on everyones email and TV screen!

Sorry but, I gotta says it gets SICK seeing some of the rude people here :(

but to be fair, I did swear pretty ferociously in an email to my mom, so I may be a little rude myself!

Acorn...nuts....

:rofl:

:rofl:

My all-time favorite button. Wish I could find it again.

and so I just read up on them a little before I reached out. Glad to be of service.

I haven't been following the whole Acorn drama that closely. Thanks for a great summary.

I took my mom to lunch the other day. I was trying not to bring up politics because I had a bad feeling I knew where she stood. She's 78 and the older she gets, the more her rightwing fundie church owns of her brain.

Right in the middle of lunch, she say's she thinks Sarah Palin's going to be great for our country. I was so disgusted I just said, "she's a nutcase, but I'm not too worried about her because they don't have a chance in hell of getting elected unless there was MASSIVE election fraud."

She's an absolutely minimal, microscopic information voter, so it wasn't even worth going any further. I just hate losing respect for her thinking when she probably has so little time left.

God, the things people around my mom, in particular, put in her ear - and it really is sad, the older she gets the less functional her "this is complete nonsense" meter is.

Honestly, watching them simultaneously makes me worried as hell about them and scared to death of getting old.

I, for one, expect ALL parties to be absolutely honest and trustworthy when it comes to OUR integrity in this election ...

Early on, few DUers were willing to even open the question, demanding that this is simply more of the same nastiness from the Right Wing, and nothing to be concerned about ... I beg to differ ...

Even though ACORN is honest, and even though the Right Wing nutters have traditionally created these faux insinuations in order to sully the reputations of the Democrats AND black community organizers, it is STILL incumbent on ACORN to show proof that all is well, and that all possible fraudulent entries have been expunged and turned over to the authorities, and that ONLY legitimate registrations have been incorporated into the voter rolls.....

It isnt a matter of their basic honesty, which I do not question, but a need to GET IN FRONT OF THE STORY, and prove beyond a shadow of doubt that there is no fraud on the part of ACORN ....

These stories become legend in short order .... it is important to keep it from growing beyond reason, and from becoming ingrained into the body politic as 'fact' ...

ACORN needs to come out on the national stage and show EXACTLY what happened, and how they will make sure it wont happen again ....

Sometimes these stories need wide refutation beyond: "oh .. it's just those crazy righties again .. Don't mind them" ... That isnt enough .... This stuff can hurt with independents and moderates ....

Geez, that's the freaking point. Anyone who takes a deep breath, takes two minutes to figure out how this all works and then thinks about it realizes this is fucking stupid.

It's one thing to say: "Oh, it's the fundies again"

It's another thing to say: "This is fucking stupid, and I can tell you exactly why."

Please tell me that you can see the difference between these two approaches.

What they're trying to sell here is based on something that doesn't make any sense.

I expect EVERYONE to be above board, and I am satisfied ACORN is ... but that isnt the point ...

It makes NO SENSE to deny the need to get the refutation out there, front and center, and widely broadcast .... THAT is my point ...

Some DUERs are so pissed that we should have to say ANYTHING about this, but this is a political campaign, and charges of this nature MUST be answered ... quickly and with resolve ...

People react to these stories just because they heard them .... It is very important that ACORN and Democrats get out in front with the response and tamp down the story before it grows .... And they have done that, against the wishes and desires of some DUers ....

pile of feces this is, generated by monkeys who are down to the "throwing poo at the wall to see if it sticks" phase of their collective debacle.

I'd copy, paste it in here but ACORN's statement of facts is worth your read. Pass it along please. It clears up alot of misconceptions.

http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/10/acorn_rallies_its_troops.php

"There has never been a single proven case of anyone, anywhere, casting an illegal vote as a result of a phony voter registration."

Really, this is all that needs to be said.

Because you know what this equals? It equals, "shut the fuck up, this is a non-story."

How anyone can have any interest in this story after reading just this one fact is unfathomable to me, particularly as - as others in this thread have noted - what is REALLY A STORY is all the hideous fraud and ugliness that goes into the Election Fraud that has a nice, meaty chapter in the GOP playbook.

She filed a false registration and voted in another district. No one disputes that. It was "voter fraud" plain and simple.

The reason she gave was that she didn't want her real address to be in the public record because there are nutcases out there stalking her.

Fair enough. No prosecution in her case. http://www.bradblog.com/?p=2809

These right-wing assholes that are accusing Acorn are huge hypocrites.

it is very different to have a registration bleed from one district to another versus having a fake person vote or a person who is not eligible to vote cast a ballot.

If you know how the process works, it is MUCH harder for them to get it right every time for *exactly* where you live than it is for them to determine whether you exist or not. A district to district fraud probably gets picked up over time, but probably can be snuck in for a single election. I also question whether the district fraud allowed her to vote in any different elections than she would have voted in under her real district. Because that is the real issue. I can imagine them not being terribly vigilant about this if it doesn't affect a single election in terms of what you are eligible to vote for.

and guess what? Mom's response was predictably maddening.

Ah, family

:rofl:

See how that works ?

I dont need to be convinced: Independents and moderates who may be swayed by the RW bullshit need to be convinced, and ACORN and the Democratic party needs to do the convincing ....

filled out must by law, be turned it right? You know that you can download a registration and fill it out anyway you like and send it in, right? You know that you need to put a social security number, or your license number on the application right?

http://www.eac.gov/files/voter/nvra_update.pdf
Application Instructions
Before filling out the body of the form, please answer the questions on the top of the form as to whether you are a United States citizen and whether you will be 18 years old on or before Election Day. If you answer no to either of these questions,
you may not use this form to register to vote. However, state specific instructions may provide additional information
on eligibility to register to vote prior to age 18.
Box 1 — Name
Put in this box your full name in this order — Last, First,
Middle. Do not use nicknames or initials.
Note: If this application is for a change of name, please
tell us in Box A (on the bottom half of the form) your
full name before you changed it.
Box 2 — Home Address
Put in this box your home address (legal address). Do not put your mailing address here if it is different from your home address. Do not use a post office box or rural route without a box number. Refer to state-specific instructions for rules regarding use of route numbers.
Note: If you were registered before but this is the first time you are registering from the address in Box 2, please tell us in Box B (on the bottom half of the form) the address where you were registered before. Please give us as much of the address as you can remember.
Also Note: If you live in a rural area but do not have a street address, or if you have no address, please show where you live using the map in Box C (at the bottom of the form).
Box 3 — Mailing Address
If you get your mail at an address that is different from the address in Box 2, put your mailing address in this box. If you have no address in Box 2, you must write in Box 3 an address where you can be reached by mail.
Box 4 — Date of Birth
Put in this box your date of birth in this order — Month, Day, Year. Be careful not to use today’s date!
Box 5 — Telephone Number
Most States ask for your telephone number in case there are questions about your application. However, you do not have to fill in this box.
Box 6 — ID Number
Federal law requires that states collect from each registrant
an identification number. You must refer to your state's specific instructions for item 6 regarding information
on what number is acceptable for your state. If you have neither a drivers license nor a social security number,
please indicate this on the form and a number will be assigned to you by your state.
Box 7 — Choice of Party
In some States, you must register with a party if you want to take part in that party’s primary election, caucus, or convention. To find out if your State requires this, see item 7 in the instructions under your State.
If you want to register with a party, print in the box the full name of the party of your choice.
If you do not want to register with a party, write “no party” or leave the box blank. Do not write in the word “independent” if you mean “no party,” because this might be confused with the name of a political party in your State. Note: If you do not register with a party, you can still vote in general elections and nonpartisan (nonparty) primary elections.
Box 8 — Race or Ethnic Group
A few States ask for your race or ethnic group, in order to administer the Federal Voting Rights Act. To find out if your State asks for this information, see item 8 in the instructions under your State. If so, put in Box 8 the choice that best describes you from the list below:
•
American Indian or Alaskan Native
•
Asian or Pacific Islander
•
Black, not of Hispanic Origin
•
Hispanic
•
Multi-racial
•
White, not of Hispanic Origin
•
Other
Box 9 — Signature
Review the information in item 9 in the instructions under
your State. Before you sign or make your mark, make sure that:
(1)
You meet your State’s requirements, and
(2)
You understand all of Box 9.
Finally, sign your full name or make your mark, and print today’s date in this order — Month, Day, Year. If the applicant is unable to sign, put in Box D the name, address, and telephone number (optional) of the person who helped the applicant.
2

We are in a political campaign, where you do things that benefit your campaign in order to win ...

As LAME as it sounds to you ... as ridiculous as it may seem to have to respond to this travesty: It MUST be responded to, before the lie becomes accepted 'fact' ....

You just proved to me, someone who DOES NOT NEED TO BE SHOWN THE TRUTH, and yet you are unwilling to admit that other citizens should be shown a definitive refutation as well ?

While I find it important that you are very happy with how things go in this world, I find it far more important for the Obama campaign to do everything in it's power to defend it's electoral stake, even against bogus stories like this ....

what ACORN's response is?
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/10/09/2008-10-09_gop_in_push_to_erase_voters_purges_acorn.html
http://www.acorn.org/index.php?id=12439&tx_ttnews=22381&tx_ttnews=12340&cHash=79239ac0e2
http://www.acorn.org/index.php?id=12439&tx_ttnews=22383&tx_ttnews=12340&cHash=ef14f35f55

in the media, so ALL citizens can hear it, and NOT have anyone come on their televisions and refute the lies and explain the truth ?

You want everyone to run to their computers and FIND the refutations themselves ? ... and what if they dont and vote against Obama ? .... Will it still be ok then ?

Look ... This isnt a matter of you or I being righteous ... It is a matter of running a campaign as best as you can so that you WIN ..... IF your opponent comes out with a BS story, you had better come out and show that it is BS, or you just might lose ....

Ask John Kerry how he feels about that ....

reporting the facts? No..but I no longer expect them to. That is why we are in the mess we are in. It is no longer their job to inform. It is ours.

The problem is that the right-wing will continue to lie about this, no matter how much we try and smack it down.

The only solution is to talk face-to-face with people who are concerned about this and try and explain it to them.

From Velvet Revolution

Blogged at the Velvet Revolution Election Protection Strike Force.

that video is both funny and well put together. Good stuff.

:evilgrin:

the fundy, illegally politicized DoJ investigates "voter fraud", leaks it to the press, and the fundies go insane. And, every election, NO instance of voter fraud is actually found.

The DoJ is being investigated for this -- well, for firing attorneys who would not lie about having found voter fraud when they didn't.

to make matters worse, the DoJ (currently being investigated for being illegally politicized; Fine said INDEED the Intern program where the lifelong appts are given WAS illegally politicized, now onto the appointees Cheney and the Bushman fired when they weren't fundy enough) is supposed to investigate election fraud.

which, as we all know, not only does exist, has been proven and is a MAJOR problem.

but of course, the Puke led DoJ refuses to investigate election fraud...well, actually, when one Republican webmaster was called to testify against the Fascists, his life and his wife were threatened by our own DoJ peeps. Nice, eh? And who did his lawyer have to petition for help? Muck-assey? Yea, the new head of the DoJ, who is every bit as partisan as a good little Fascist should be. Clearly, he wasn't going to help this dude.

My point, yes, I veered way off course-- but that is because this INFURIATES me -- is that election fraud occurs every election. Massive election fraud. massive voter disenfranchisement. it has already started this year.

What state was it where the Dems had to sue the GOP's efforts to disenfranchise voters (OK, not a good question, there were many) and the judge came back and announced that this was transparent election chicanery on the part of the GOP. No go.

The GOP has sent out absentee ballots to dems with wrong return address on them, challenged voters who have been foreclosed on, threatened students that they would lose their scholarships if they changed their addresses so they could vote, etc. It's been ugly and it will get worse. and that is not even the FRAUD part. the fraud part is the vote switching devices like the ones found by a Republican security expert on the Georgia Diebold machines in 2006.

I could go on and on but I'll get too pissed.

Anyone who is ignorant enough to be worried about ACORN (*edited to add I don't mean to be disrespectful to your mom here) should be told, "gee, I am so glad you care about our elections and fraud. Let me tell you about a HUGE problem, impacting millions of voters this year. Yes, millions. Election fraud."

...that ACORN is required to turn in all registration forms--even the ones they know are fraudulent. Because we wouldn't want organizations that register voters to filter them, would we?