Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Election Response, An Open Letter to the Eureka, CA City Council
Dear Mayor La Vallee and Eureka City Councilmembers,
As I've mentioned at recent Council meetings, I've been working in the community to develop a response to the recent "election." The Election Incident Reporting System has now recorded over 34,000 reports of voting irregularities and at least two states are facing recounts. Clearly, many pre-election concerns were justified. However, voting is only part of the story.
Predictably, even the supposedly liberal New York Times and San Francisco Chronicle have been dismissive of efforts to investigate. This was predictable because of a pattern many seem afraid to acknowledge: the truth about the 2000 election was not revealed in a timely manner; myriad unanswered questions remain about 9/11; a fake threat took us to war (again). For many decades American citizens have been manipulated by the way information is framed and shared. The US government often claims to win public acceptance or support while relying upon intentionally distorted parameters of reality (current White House staffers even mock the "reality-based community," which is "not the way the world really works anymore.").
The people of Eureka and Humboldt County can both see and handle the truth: we should not endure more Orwellian paradoxes that leave us with no way to know what to believe. This is not a partisan position and does not seek to overturn the "election" outcome. This is the common sense of the No Confidence Movement saying there is no BASIS for confidence in the legitimacy of US elections. Will you please join me in viewing this as a huge opportunity for meaningful electoral reform?
I have identified eight points necessary to restore a BASIS for confidence. These optimistic, hopeful, and ambitious changes are found below in the The No Confidence Resolution. To succeed, small town leaders will need to coordinate with other No Confidence communities, use historic terms that again match our circumstances, and ensure that we are represented with the Consent of the Governed. Our part is the epitome of thinking globally and acting locally. I respectfully request that you add the No Confidence Resolution to the next City Council agenda and pass it.
In the meantime, if your e-mail supports HTML you'll notice many links throughout the resolution that direct you to supporting evidence (if not, you can read it at my blog by clicking the URL at the bottom). In the interest of transparency, this letter is being posted in my blog and I will assume any written responses I receive are also suitable for publication there, unless a request for privacy is indicated. I sincerely appreciate the gracious interest and respect you have recently demonstrated for these concerns. I hope this will continue in a way that makes clear the most effective ways for the community to win your support for the resolution.
In Respect and Peace,
No Confidence Resolution (v5.0, last updated 11/12/04 11pm)
WHEREAS private corporate ownership of voting machines has inherent conflicts of interest, and has specifically led to partisan support;
and
WHEREAS most voting machines made by private companies do not provide a voter-verifiable paper ballot or a permanent paper record of votes;
and
WHEREAS no machine has ever proven to be infallible, and there is extensive documentation of thousands of so-called voting machine "glitches," including lost data, negative vote totals, tallies equaling more votes than there are registered voters, and persistent automatic vote swapping from a voter's chosen candidate to an opponent, with some of said "glitches" being severe enough to change an election's outcome;
and
WHEREAS data from the 2004 U.S. presidential election indicate an enormous probability of fraud including, but not limited to, a non-random pattern involving optical scan machines in several states tallying significantly more votes for one candidate than could be expected based on exit polls, voter registrations or even voter turnout;
THEREFORE be it resolved that the City Council of XX, rejects as fraudulent the results reported from the 2004 US presidential election;
Be it also resolved that until:
Be it also resolved that fraudulent elections constitute denial of the Consent of the Governed, defined in the Declaration of Independence as the self-evident truth from which government derives just Power. This Council reserves the right to exercise remedies described therein.
Permalink: http://guvwurld.blogspot.com/2004/11/no-confidence-resolution.html
Check out the No Confidence Movement Primer to see what you and your town can do.
0 comments
As I've mentioned at recent Council meetings, I've been working in the community to develop a response to the recent "election." The Election Incident Reporting System has now recorded over 34,000 reports of voting irregularities and at least two states are facing recounts. Clearly, many pre-election concerns were justified. However, voting is only part of the story.
Predictably, even the supposedly liberal New York Times and San Francisco Chronicle have been dismissive of efforts to investigate. This was predictable because of a pattern many seem afraid to acknowledge: the truth about the 2000 election was not revealed in a timely manner; myriad unanswered questions remain about 9/11; a fake threat took us to war (again). For many decades American citizens have been manipulated by the way information is framed and shared. The US government often claims to win public acceptance or support while relying upon intentionally distorted parameters of reality (current White House staffers even mock the "reality-based community," which is "not the way the world really works anymore.").
The people of Eureka and Humboldt County can both see and handle the truth: we should not endure more Orwellian paradoxes that leave us with no way to know what to believe. This is not a partisan position and does not seek to overturn the "election" outcome. This is the common sense of the No Confidence Movement saying there is no BASIS for confidence in the legitimacy of US elections. Will you please join me in viewing this as a huge opportunity for meaningful electoral reform?
I have identified eight points necessary to restore a BASIS for confidence. These optimistic, hopeful, and ambitious changes are found below in the The No Confidence Resolution. To succeed, small town leaders will need to coordinate with other No Confidence communities, use historic terms that again match our circumstances, and ensure that we are represented with the Consent of the Governed. Our part is the epitome of thinking globally and acting locally. I respectfully request that you add the No Confidence Resolution to the next City Council agenda and pass it.
In the meantime, if your e-mail supports HTML you'll notice many links throughout the resolution that direct you to supporting evidence (if not, you can read it at my blog by clicking the URL at the bottom). In the interest of transparency, this letter is being posted in my blog and I will assume any written responses I receive are also suitable for publication there, unless a request for privacy is indicated. I sincerely appreciate the gracious interest and respect you have recently demonstrated for these concerns. I hope this will continue in a way that makes clear the most effective ways for the community to win your support for the resolution.
In Respect and Peace,
No Confidence Resolution (v5.0, last updated 11/12/04 11pm)
WHEREAS private corporate ownership of voting machines has inherent conflicts of interest, and has specifically led to partisan support;
and
WHEREAS most voting machines made by private companies do not provide a voter-verifiable paper ballot or a permanent paper record of votes;
and
WHEREAS no machine has ever proven to be infallible, and there is extensive documentation of thousands of so-called voting machine "glitches," including lost data, negative vote totals, tallies equaling more votes than there are registered voters, and persistent automatic vote swapping from a voter's chosen candidate to an opponent, with some of said "glitches" being severe enough to change an election's outcome;
and
WHEREAS data from the 2004 U.S. presidential election indicate an enormous probability of fraud including, but not limited to, a non-random pattern involving optical scan machines in several states tallying significantly more votes for one candidate than could be expected based on exit polls, voter registrations or even voter turnout;
THEREFORE be it resolved that the City Council of XX, rejects as fraudulent the results reported from the 2004 US presidential election;
Be it also resolved that until:
There shall be no BASIS for confidence in the legitimacy of the results reported from future US federal elections;1) all private corporations are divested of ownership in election machines, and
2) clean money laws keep all corporate funds out of campaign financing, and
3) any future mechanisms for voting conform to a uniform national standard and produce a verifiable audit trail for every vote, and
4) all votes are cast on the same day, designated as a national holiday, with the exception of absentee ballots which will be granted to applicants meeting a narrow list of federally determined criteria, and
5) all votes are counted publicly in the presence of citizen witnesses and credentialed members of the media, and
6) equal time provisions are observed by the media along with a measurable increase in local, public control of the airwaves, and
7) presidential debates contain a minimum of three candidates, and are run by a non-partisan commission comprised of representatives of publicly owned media outlets, and
8) ranked choice voting, also called instant runoff voting, is implemented for federal elections (see H.R. 5293);
Be it also resolved that fraudulent elections constitute denial of the Consent of the Governed, defined in the Declaration of Independence as the self-evident truth from which government derives just Power. This Council reserves the right to exercise remedies described therein.
Permalink: http://guvwurld.blogspot.com/2004/11/no-confidence-resolution.html
Check out the No Confidence Movement Primer to see what you and your town can do.
0 comments
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