Celestina

Diebold Electronic Machines Malfunction, Vote for Other Candidate

Cynthia McKinney, running for Congress in Georgia’s Fourth District, has released the following announcements on her website (copied over here for ease of reading):

(Decatur) After one hour of voting, the McKinney campaign has received numerous calls that the voting machines are malfunctioning. Voters casting votes for McKinney are reportedly having their votes switched by the machines for Hank Johnson. This is not a new problem with Diebold machines. Lawyers for the campaign have been alerted and said that if this situation is not corrected, Cynthia McKinney for Congress will be forced to take additional measures. Two Hours Into Voting, More Problems Recorded With Diebold Electronic Machines, Pollbooks

Just after the polls opened, numerous problems with Diebold electronic voting machines were noted. At one Rockdale precinct, reportedly a single Diebold machine malfunction affected the performance of the entire sequence of machines assigned to that precinct. Additionally, one machine didn’t have a plug and sat idle. In addition, workers were not adequately trained on the use of the electronic pollbooks, resulting in unnecessary voter frustration.

When one McKinney voter realized too late that her intended vote had been switched by the voting machine to a McKinney opponent, the polling place official’s response was “she needs to let us know next time before she casts her ballot.” McKinney campaign officials want to know, what about this time?

I know it’s all silly conspiracy theory…I know! But I can’t help but wonder:

What’s the most unbelievable conspiracy theory? Continue reading

The Art of Relationships: Emotional Bonds and Power Games

 

After a recent discussion as to the nature of relationships in society, Claus Jacobson and I decided to each take on the same concept using our different writing approaches, and see what articles emerged. Kind of a mini-writer’s club. The concept to be explored was outlined thus:

Modern relationships consist of two things, emotional bonds and power games. The ability to keep each other playing up to the same level of skill is as important as emotional reciprocity for the equilibrium of a relationship. That makes it sort of a Renaissance art form, a project and a calculus as much as the art of painting, sculpturing, composing or, say, seduction. Some would think it cynical, a lot would find it realistic to think of it this way, and a few could probably even see some outlandish beauty in it.

What follows is my take on this sentiment, while Claus’s article can be found over here.

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