American Democracy - Nice While it Lasted

So the Goon's wife shows up at her local polling place bright and early at 8AM today. It was a bit tricky to find - the location has been changed since the last US election, and it's down an obscure, winding road that doesn't show up on Mapquest. When she gets there, she's asked to fill out a card with her name and personal info. They tell her to make sure that she writes her name in exactly the same way as it's written on the registration list.

"Oh," she says. "Okay. So, can I see a registration list?"

"No," she is told in response. "You cannot. Our registration machine isn't working."

She then waits in line for an hour and a half. She's standing next to a lady who's walking with two canes. This lady's card says that she was born in 1922. Nobody offers her a place to sit down.

Finally, an 'official' starts walking up and down the line, telling people that of the eight voting machines at the poll, only two have been programmed correctly. This Helpful Public Servant offers the reccomendation that voters "try some other facility."


Were things any better in ths country when people who turned up to vote on the first Tuesday of November were told "Go away, nigger?" I suppose that we are at least a bit politer now. And that's what really matters, right? Right??