Election Day

I just got back from our public library returning some old books and checking out new ones. The basement of the library was serving as a polling place today and the study room in the Young Adult section was being used to register new voters.

Let me be clear - the polls have been open since 6am and they are open until 7 or 8pm tonight. And early voting has been available for weeks. And yet, there was a line of at least 8 people (I didn't look and see how far into the room the line extended) waiting to register to vote. What were these people waiting for? Did they not get the message? I don't begrudge them their right to vote, but I think that registering to vote shouldn't take place two hours before the polls close.

When we went to vote this morning, we were asked for our name and to confirm our address. No proof of idenfitication, address or signature necessary. I left wondering who else's name I could vote under. I did not try and test the system.

Our polling place is an elementary school. They were having a bake sale. I think no one gave them the message that if you vote and wear your "I Voted" sticker you get free treats. Plus, if the referendum to lower property taxes by increasing sales tax passes, they shouldn't need to be holding as many bake sales or charging as much for what looked like a misshapen, dried out brownie.

Knock, Knock

I want the political canvassers (aka: people with clipboards) to stop knocking on my door and ringing the bell. It's been going on for weeks now, several times a day. And they're leaving all sorts of annoying literature. ARGGGH!

I finally wrote a note and posted it on the door. It says:
"Dear Political Canvassers,
Please do not ring the bell. We have finely honed
ESP skills and your thoughts will be more appreciated than
your actions."

What I wanted to end with was "Now go away!" But I didn't, because no matter what my reputation, I'm just not that rude. Most of the time.

When I went down to tape the note to the door, the clipboard-holding doorbell-ringing canvassers were across the street. You would have thought that I held raw steak for a hungry junkyard dog to see how fast they ran toward me. I pulled their literature off my door and handed it back to them. And then I (more or less politely) asked them to please take us off whatever list shows that we want to be interrupted several times a day by a loud buzzer.

One of them tried to hand me a "I Voted Today" sticker to put on our door that she swore would stop the offenses. I told her I hadn't yet voted and that when I did, I would be happy to wear a sticker. (Plus, I hear that all sorts of coffee, ice cream and donut shops are giving away free treats if you wear your sticker tomorrow. I wonder what happens to the people who voted last week and didn't keep theirs, or it stopped sticking. Maybe we could get a whole roll and pass them out to homeless people so they can get a coffee and donut? But I digress....) And, I have no idea if both parties are abiding by the "sticker on the door" rule or just hers.

The sad thing is that I love Election Day. I don't care who you vote for - I love that we vote. In fact, I think we should have a rule that says if you can vote but don't, your taxes double. That would either pay down our national debt really fast or get more people involved in the democratic process. Hmm, I wonder if any of the candidates has thought of this yet....