Re: Possible Denver Post Ad

[Ralph Shnelvar <ralphs@xxxxxxxxx>]

This subject used to be
	Re: Possible Denver Post Ad


Dear Bob:

On Fri, 11 Jun 2004 11:44:44 -0600, you wrote:

>I am receiving conflicting messages from several national experts on the 
>wisdom of advocating absentee ballots.  I need us to get our message 
>straight before we advocate any course of action through an advertisement.  

I am hardly an expert but I'd like to make some observations.

1) Whether any individual's vote is counted correctly is completely
irrelevant if all/some other votes are not counted correctly.  Thus spending
the time and effort to file a mail-in ballot is a waste of time.

2) Mail-in ballots are subject to fraud.  Being low-tech they are subject to
fraud by a different group of practitioners than the DRE crowd.
Unfortunately, the result is the same: fraud.


If it were up to me (and it isn't) the ad campaign I would promote would be
for paper ballots collected at polling places.  Talk to any experienced
election judge: the systems have been in place for years and the checks and
balances work.  Fraud is certainly possible but it is harder than with
either DRE or mail-in ballots.



My vote for an ad campaign (and, god, it would be expensive) would be (and
it is a loving "parody" of the EarthShare commercial):

- - - - - -
There is just one man and just one woman and just one vote.  Support all
these groups who have joined together to make sure that your vote is cast
the way you want.  Make sure that your vote is on a piece of paper that can
be counted by people and not just machines because your vote is a precious
natural resource not to be wasted.

Join us to make sure that every vote counts, only valid votes are cast, and
every vote is counted just once.

Remember, the fate of the earth hangs in the balance.
- - - - - -

Ralph Shnelvar