Boorish Behavior

I tell you, I'm ashamed sometimes by a great number of the citizens of this country. Truly ashamed. Blog Father Grau had a post today about how he is concerned about what it will be like on Nov 3rd with the election being so nasty.

If you do not live in Florida, please allow me to tell you what is happening here. It was in our papers today. We have early voting here... something that was brought into legislation due to the fiasco of the 2000 election. The rules of no soliciting by groups or campaign supporters within 50 feet of the entrance of a polling place on voting day DOES NOT apply to early voting. So people are being harassed. It is ugly. Polling places are on public governmental property, such as libraries, not like on voting day where they are at fire stations or churches.

In Orange County, someone took all the magazines at the library where voting was taking place and turned them so their candidates faces were showing. Someone from the opposing side checked them all out. People are being rude to the children in the library as their parents try to take them to read... trying to pass the throngs of voters. Orange County may close down all 8 sites.

In Palm Beach County, polling volunteers have literally walked out due to verbal abuse and harassment. Our Elections Supervisor has said, she cannot replace them. If they walk, she will close down the polling place. Period. One polling volunteer was physically manhandled. I believe I heard she may have already closed down 2 of our 8 early polling places, but I am unsure. As of this morning, she was thinking about it.

What have we come to? We are living in the greatest country in the world... 'a democracy in a Republic; a sovereign Nation of many sovereign States; a perfect Union, one and inseparable;...'

I am appalled and embarrassed... by both sides. Our forefathers must be turning in their graves, for surely they did not sacrifice 'their lives and fortunes' for this boorish single minded behavior. We are not leading other countries by example. We.Are.Not.