RE: Time to lobby the City

["Paul Tiger - LPBC - Outreach" <LPBC-O@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This should have mentioned Alysa Lewis and Linda Salas, because they are the
people that are going to decide how the COB election is run. Not the
newspapers; not the public-at-large; not the city council, etc.

There are workings of government that are more effective when dealt with
through the people responsible for those actions. If they fail to respond or
perform their tasks as is demanded by the law and their constituents, then
nastigrams to the press and waving picket signs on their doorstep is
suggested. But first it is best to try normal channels.

-----Original Message-----
From: Evan Daniel Ravitz [mailto:evan@xxxxxxxx]
Sent: Friday, November 19, 2004 10:01 AM
To: cvv-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Time to lobby the City


Folks,

Please write letters SOON to editors and the City Council, which is
VERY SOON to decide how to run the March 8 election to replace Will
Toor. Here's mine, sent today to the Camera:

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 19 Nov 2004 09:57:29 -0700 (MST)
From: Evan Daniel Ravitz <evan@xxxxxxxx>
To: Boulder Daily Camera <evansc@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: letter re: voting tech


Editor,

The Camera has published several letters saying be patient with the
County's new voting system because it's "accurate." There is NO way
to know if the system is accurate because the software is a trade
secret.

Manhattan election commissioner Douglas Kellner told the NY Women's
Bar Association: "Using electronic voting machines to count ballots
is akin to taking all the paper ballots and handing them over to a
couple of computer tech people to count them in a secret room, and
then tell us how it came out. This is not an acceptable way of
conducting elections in a democracy."

The record shows that at two County Commissioners hearings, the ONLY
people in favor of the proprietary system bought for $1.5 million
were employed by the County or the vendor, Hart InterCivic  (whose
major investor is Tom Hicks, who made Bush a millionaire by buying
the Texas Rangers.) ALL other citizens testified for either
hand-counting, used in Canada, Britain, Germany, etc. and which an
MIT/Caltech study shows is the most accurate, or for public
software, used in Australia.

Never have I seen such a clear example of government against the
people.

The County seems determined to cover up their contemptuous mistake.
County spokesman Jim Burrus told the Rocky Mtn. News: "It's what the
folks wanted." They are now investigating themselves, the
perpetrators appointing a commission to study the situation.

The City is having a special election March 8 to elect Will Toor's
replacement. Please contact the city council
(council@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) and ask for a hand count. Council member
Crystal Gray is one of over 130 citizens who volunteered in just 3
days for hand counting, which list the County ignored. This is a
very simple election, a great time to start doing the public's most
important business in public, and keeping our money here.

Evan Ravitz
1130 11th St. #3
Boulder CO 80302
(303)440-6838