The Tennessee Voter Confidence Act (banning DREs, mandating audits) becomes LAW this Thursday!!!

I have just received an invitation from the bill's primary sponsor (rep.gary.moore@legislature.state.tn.us -- drop him a note of thanks if you can) to participate in the signing ceremony with the Governor. Glad I'll have time to polish up my tin-foil hat before then.

In all seriousness, we are certainly not finished saving our democracy in the Orange State. In fact, because the bill does not mandate the change until 2010, I am meeting with Vanderbilt faculty after the signing ceremony to discuss bringing a lawsuit to mandate the reforms sooner.

But the TN Voter Confidence Act is a huge step for us, for the South (where, as always, reform is as slow as molasses on a cold winter day), and for the country. We would not have made it without the great support and the technical and strategic assistance of so many DUers.

If any of you would like a copy of the bill, go to http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/ scroll down on the left margin and click on "Legislation", then type in "HB1256" in the box provided.

Thanks, guys. If we never stop fighting, we cannot lose.

Well, what do you know? We WERE the ones we had been waiting for after all.

Just hope it is enough to stop the planned for steal by McCain in the Nov elections.

And, I usually don't get to say that. :)

How dare a state rid itself of DREs without federal mandate in the form of Rush Holt legislation.

LOL!

Good stuff, Fly.

Now it's time to go a lot farther.

Vote free or Diebold!!

Of course, you turned me on to BradBlog at the same time
So we would be even

Except I then sat on my ass and didn't help fight the war
except for firing off a few emails and signing petitions

Being sick and therefore poor has kept me from doing a lot I wanted to


But Anyway

Congratulations!

You've been the hardest working activist I've ever seen.

Don't let the trip to Hef's House ruin you.

(I vote to go to Venice Beach and rent some inline skates)

I'm trying to arrange a showing of "UNCOUNTED: The New Math of American Elections" for the Maury Co. Democrats. I'd like to ram the bill down the throat of that corrupt DINO Ledbetter who chairs our county election commission. What an ignorant putz -- I can't wait to tell him that the final vote on our bill was a razor-thin 92 to 4. Of course, as you know, you can never win an argument with an ignorant man. (Boy, you tried, didn't you?)

I'll try to survive Los Angeles and the Playboy mansion. It's hard work, but someone has to do it.

Yeah, I've known Gary LeadButt since we were in Columbia Military Academy back in the 60's.
He was an overweight pud ass even then.

I made some headway with Derryberry and esp his wife though.
They wanted to believe but were bonded to the powers that be in MCDP
and that's Jerry Colley and his wife along with Gary.

Jerry Colley got the charges dropped for me once when I got set up holding pot.
(There were many times I would have been guilty but, this time was a set up)
He was the go to lawyer if you had drug charges for years.

But when i tried to talk to him after Nov 2004 about what had clearly happened
He had his head up his ass.

See if you can get that County Elections Super there too.
He needs a taste of "Uncounted"

BTW, I still haven't seen it.
Am I in the final cut?
I'm pretty much homebound these days
(comes from having to use strong opioids instead of weed Haven't seen a doobie in years!)

Hey, are there any free dvds of "Uncounted" floating around?
If I'm in it, I ought to see it

If not, I can mail it to you if you'll send it back. David Earnhardt has continued to edit it so I can't remember if you're in the latest "cut". It's a very powerful film, already seen in all 50 states and 30+ foreign countries. It's also been selected for a showing at the American Film Institute.

Not bad for a bunch of TN hillbillies who said to folks on the left and right coasts who wanted a national election reform conference back in 2005: "If you're waiting on us, you're backing up."

I'm kinda a fish out of the water
a 28 ft sailboat on a trailer on a farm outside of Lebanon

and I don't have any way to copy it or even watch it
my laptop is hanging by a thread with a broke DYD player in it
I'm lucky it's still holding together enough to get online
no cable or phone line so I use a verizon cell modem

I heard David on KPHX Poenix Nova M
They gave him quite a reception out in AZ
I listen to Nova M from sun up to bed time
not much else to do these days
cept hang out on DU

They post them on www.uncountedthemovie.com . Who knows, it may be coming to a venue near you. Hope so.

Would you tell us a bit about the bill, for those of us who might not follow the links? A few bullet points or something? Is it based on GuvWurld's Voter Confidence Resolution?

... including all y'all.

Thanks, emlev. We have been working the bill for three years here, dealing with a State Election Coordinator who would fit right in the Odd Squad with Blackwell and Harris. After fighting us every step of the way, he took credit for the bill in the end (just like the congenital putz that he is.)

However, I'm working on a "Thank You" speech for Thursday. I will sincerely thank the many people who really did help the bill pass. Then I will say:

Last of all, we want to thank our State Election Coordinator, who really made all of us work hard for this day. And since he succeeded in delaying implementation until 2010, ...

... if Tennessee voters have to stand for hours in long lines at the polls because DREs are 15 times slower than opscan, we can thank our Coordinator.

... if our DREs malfunction, or catch on fire, or erase our votes without any opportunity to correct these problems, we can thank our Coordinator.

... and if Tennessee in '08 ends up looking like Ohio in '04 and Florida in '00, we should all remember to thank our Coordinator.

Without him, none of this would have been possible (or necessary).

... was a razor-thin margin of 92 to 4.

That proves to me that there are usually at least four dumb-asses in every crowd.

And, true to form, all four dumb-asses are Rethugs.

Here's hoping the rest of the country catches up with the TN real quick! :toast:

... Deborah Narrigan, MSN, the one and only Legislative committee chair for our group, Gathering to Save Our Democracy ( www.votesafetn.org ). This bill has been her singular obsession for the past three years. (Cap'n D, my hat's off to ya!)

... and Dick Williams, the lobbyist for Common Cause-TN, our homegrown Yoda, who guided us through the labyrinths and black holes that are the TN legislature (even as he was recovering from a heart transplant).

In addition, there are perhaps a dozen other Orange Staters who deserve a serious shout-out. Margaret Mead knew what she was talking about when she said: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

and a trip to La to boot... not the kinda of bunnies you'll find on the farm.

This has to be a bit surreal given what you went through.

What a wonderful turn of events, and well deserved.

You are absolutely right. To be where I am today, compared to where I was only a little more than a year ago, seems like I have transported between two different worlds. Fortunately, it's possible to learn (and become more skilled, I hope) in any environment.

I am really amazed that my felony med pot situation didn't more negatively affect our election reform struggle. It was never brought up in public, nor was I ever told it was an issue for discussion in private. The only explanation I have is that I was a consistent spokesman for doing the right thing (be it making med pot available to very sick people or fighting for free, fair and verifiable elections.)

In some ways, the issues are very much intertwined. Since over three quarters of Americans support access to med pot for sick and dying patients, I firmly believe that if we establish truly free, fair and verifiable elections, the will of the people on the med pot issue will bring reform, sooner than later.

On that score, I love the following quote:

"Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control man's appetite by legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes. A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded." Abe Lincoln

Thanks for the good vibes. DU has been a life-line, and a source of strength, through all of this.

:kick:

I told him that my tin-foil hat was polished up for the signing ceremony tomorrow.

My last line to Bob: "Thanks in great part to you, tin-foil IS the new black."

... were resplendent in our matching tin-foil attire.

Perhaps a dozen TV stations there, along with all major newspapers in the state. There were four bills signed, and our bill drew the largest contingent. We all stood behind the Governor when he signed the bill. The bill's Senate sponsor gave our group much credit and said that he now looked forward to having far less traffic on his email. (We've had a group of around 2,000 people swamping all state leaders with election integrity emails for months now.)

It was a good day, though we're far from done. There is no end to (and no exit from) the Eternal Vigilance highway.

So let's just enjoy the ride. (The speed-bumps you might feel are just Rethug election thieves.)

I am so proud of you and our State. I wish this would get more National Coverage.
:yourock: :headbang: :applause: :patriot:

I also love the JFK quote: "One person can make a difference. Everyone should try."

Our success here in Tennessee demonstrates that. Though one person doesn't deserve the credit for our achievement -- anyone who wrote our legislators to say "LET OUR VOTE COUNTS" should share in, and be proud of, this moment.

I did a post in GD with links to your posts here. TN has proven it can be done, and other states need to follow. I hope this story will be an inspiration to those in other states.

... that sometimes retards progress in the middle of the country is good.

As our group liked to say (to election reformers in other states) when we were organizing the National Election Reform Conference, "If you're waiting on us (to get started working for reform yourself), you're backing up."

he visits our small business on a regular basis. My 'significant other' has expressed his concern about voting machines and they have talked in detail about making a change to ensure fair elections.