I'm tired of this blog. It's been fun.

I've got a new idea, though.

...is that this is a real web site.

That is all.

We've graduated from dirty deeds. I'm trying to keep a sense of humor about this, mostly because it's bad to punch holes in walls at work.

California voters have been flooded with deceptive, official-looking voter guides in the weeks running up to today's election.

Mailings titled "Voter Information for Democrats" and "Senior Citizen Voter Information" resemble voter guides put out by the political parties and advocacy groups, like the AARP or the League of Conservation Voters.

But the groups behind these mailings are hiding their true identities -- they are in part funded by the tobacco and oil industries, according to campaign watchdog groups.

"These mailers are designed to be misleading," says Kim Alexander of the non-profit, non-partisan California Voter Foundation. "Many voters believe they represent an ideology that they really don't."

For example, the guide titled "Voter Information for Democrats" features a smiling Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) on its cover and urges voters to vote "No" on two ballot propositions that Feinstein and other Democrats actually support. One proposition would increase the tax on cigarettes while the other would create new taxes for the oil industry.

Front groups for corporations, including R.J. Reynolds, Philip Morris, Chevron Corporation, Occidental Oil & Gas and Aera Energy, helped pay for the mailing, according to campaign finance filings.

I say we don't just vote the Republicans out, we also have them spayed and neutered.

From here:

Voting appears to be very popular in Daggett County, Utah.

Daggett County has registered 947 voters for Tuesday's election. According to the most recent Census figures, that's four more than the county's population in 2005.

A spokesman for Attorney General Mark Shurtleff says complaints of vote-stuffing in the county are being investigated. Democrats suspect County Clerk Vickie McKee is letting outsiders swell the Daggett County registration rolls to give Republicans an advantage. The Democrats also say the father of a Republican deputy running for sheriff has 14 adults registered at his household. McKee hasn't responded to messages from The Associated Press.

From here:

Sources in Bergen County are reporting that an autodial robocall is being made that starts out sounding like a positive Bob Menendez message. If you hang up, it repeatedly calls you back. If you listen all the way to the end, it finishes by saying that Menendez is an embezzler and under criminal investigation.

This is a voter suppression tactic being used nationwide by the GOP. Initially callers will think they are hearing a call from the Menendez campaign asking for support. If they hang up, it will repeatedly call them back. The intention is to annoy the voter so much that they no longer support the candidate. For those who actually listen to the entire call, they are presented with a series of lies and smears against Menendez, also with the intention of suppressing turnout. It's a win-win tactic for them.

The NRCC is doing the same exact thing in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and at least 53 other races across the country.

Done dirt cheap! Dirrrrty deeeds and der dun dirt cheap. These are all coming from the Republican side; I haven't heard anything about misconduct by the Dems yet.

Tim Daly from Clarendon got a call saying that if he votes Tuesday, he will be arrested. A recording of his voicemail can be found online at: www.webbforsenate.com/media/phone_message.wav

The transcript from his voicemail reads:

"This message is for Timothy Daly. This is the Virginia Elections Commission. We've determined you are registered in New York to vote. Therefore, you will not be allowed to cast your vote on Tuesday. If you do show up, you will be charged criminally."

Daly has been registered to vote in Virginia since 1998, and he has voted for the last several cycles with no problem. He has filed a criminal complaint with the Commonwealth's attorney in Arlington.

Also:

Widespread Calls, Allegedly from "Webb Volunteers," Telling Voters that their Polling Location has Changed.

A couple of examples:

a. Norman Cox has been registered to vote in the same location in Arlington since 1972. Someone from a 406 number (in Montana) called to tell him that his polling place has changed. [Note: The Webb Campaign is NOT making any such phone calls.] Cox said he believed that he was being mislead and the caller hung up.

b. Peter Baumann in Cape Charles, VA (North Hampton) got a similar call from a "Webb volunteer" saying his polling location had changed. He said: No, I'm a poll worker and I know where I vote. The girl--who was calling from California--hung up.

The Secretary of the State Board of Elections Jean Jensen has logged dozens of similar calls, finding heavy trends in Accomack County (middle peninsula) and Essex County (outer peninsula) [as reported by the counties' registrars].

3) Fliers in Buckingham County Say "SKIP THIS ELECTION" (paid for by the RNC) have caused many in the African American community to call the Board of Elections to see if the election is still on. The full tag line says: "SKIP THIS ELECTION... (and then in smaller print): Don't Let the Tax and Spend Liberals Win."

4) Voter Machine Problems.

a. On many ballots in heavily Democratic neighborhoods, Jim's name is cut off. The ballots say: "James H. (Jim)" with no Webb.

b. New reports that ballots in Essex County have Jim's name split on 2 pages. The "James H (Jim)" on one page, "Webb" on the next.

c. Reports of voting machines in Isle of White that do not provide a clear image of the ballot, making voting a challenge.

Thanks to Kos

You know how your dog never wants its squeaky toy until you pretend to be interested in it? Then as soon as you drop it, the dog could care less?

That's why the Democrats are going to win huge tomorrow. I think voter apathy is mostly due to the fact that voting always seemed to be a God-given right in this country - of course your vote will count! But with all the fears about vote fraud, suddenly the right to vote (and have your vote actually go to the person you voted for) seems to be in jeopardy. I think turnout will be absolutely huge as a result. People are nervous and pissed off, and they're going to go to the polls and see for themselves whether they still have something they used to take for granted.

How does that help the Democrats? Republicans do so well in elections because they're better at getting their base to the polls. But that advantage is wiped out when the other side is motivated enough to actually show up on election day - not to mention all the independents who usually don't vote. When 53% of Americans want the Democrats to take control (compared to 32% that want the Republicans to stay in power), higher turnout means good things for Democrats.

There's some hack psychology for you.

Just watched this documentary's premiere on HBO. It left me completely fuming. There's no way to watch it and come away anything but convinced that our election system at the very least is highly vulnerable to fraud, and in all likelihood has already been significantly affected by it.

The longer this goes on, the less we will be able to do about it. But what can we do right now? Anything? How can anything change when the same party controls all three branches of government, and has rigged the elections so it stays that way forever?

I remember when I was still optimistic for this month's elections... like, two hours ago. Those were good times.

I was just starting to not hate you.

Just stumbled across a great video put together by the ACLU. Covers what your legal rights are in common encounters with the police (traffic stops, etc.), and how you should handle those situations to best avoid getting in trouble.