Getbig.com: American Bodybuilding, Fitness and Figure
Getbig Main Boards => Politics and Political Issues Board => Topic started by: Soul Crusher on August 29, 2011, 06:05:52 AM
-
Rep. John Lewis: A Poll Tax by Another Name
from the NYT:
AS we celebrate the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, we reflect on the life and legacy of this great man. But recent legislation on voting reminds us that there is still work to do. Since January, a majority of state legislatures have passed or considered election-law changes that, taken together, constitute the most concerted effort to restrict the right to vote since before the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Growing up as the son of an Alabama sharecropper, I experienced Jim Crow firsthand. It was enforced by the slander of “separate but equal,” willful blindness to acts of racially motivated violence and the threat of economic retaliation. The pernicious effect of those strategies was to institutionalize second-class citizenship and restrict political participation to the majority alone.
We have come a long way since the 1960s. When the Voting Rights Act was passed, there were only 300 elected African-American officials in the United States; today there are more than 9,000, including 43 members of Congress. The 1993 National Voter Registration Act — also known as the Motor Voter Act — made it easier to register to vote, while the 2002 Help America Vote Act responded to the irregularities of the 2000 presidential race with improved election standards.
Despite decades of progress, this year’s Republican-backed wave of voting restrictions has demonstrated that the fundamental right to vote is still subject to partisan manipulation. The most common new requirement, that citizens obtain and display unexpired government-issued photo identification before entering the voting booth, was advanced in 35 states and passed by Republican legislatures in Alabama, Minnesota, Missouri and nine other states — despite the fact that as many as 25 percent of African-Americans lack acceptable identification. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/27/opinion/a-poll-tax-by...
________________________ ________________________ ______
25% don't have ID? WTF is that?
-
How hard can it be to get off your ass and get an ID? It's not a kidney transplant we're talking about here.
-
How hard can it be to get off your ass and get an ID? It's not a kidney transplant we're talking about here.
Didnt many of these same 25% have to present ID when they signed up to drive, get welfare, etc?
-
I am suspicious of these figures being "25%". Its pretty dam hard to get along these days without ID for many reasons.
-
I am suspicious of these figures being "25%". Its pretty dam hard to get along these days without ID for many reasons.
Not really. The majority of elderly people don't have personal identification. They simply can't afford to buy one much less wait in a long line to get one. Even with an expired ID, it is still acceptable for use. So it would actually be akin to a poll tax. Most people in the South try to stay off the government radar as much as possible so they don't want to have to present ID in fear of being arrest, being served with a lawsuit, or foreclosure....there's a number of ways that information can be misused
We already have to register in order to vote which can be done by mail and is free so this additional requirement is simply ridiculous. The GOP is obviously attempting to stifle the minority vote but it will in fact backfire
-
Not really. The majority of elderly people don't have personal identification. They simply can't afford to buy one much less wait in a long line to get one. So it would actually be akin to a poll tax. Most people in the South try to stay off the government radar as much as possible so they don't want to have to present ID in fear of being arrest, being served with a lawsuit, or foreclosure....there's a number of ways that information can be misused
We already have to register in order to vote which can be done by mail and is free so this additional requirement is simply ridiculous. The GOP is obviously attempting to stifle the minority vote but it will in fact backfire
How do they get SS and medicare or medicade?
-
How do they get SS and medicare or medicade?
Once its approved, its automatically drafted into their bank accounts or mailed to them. You don't need ID to cash your check at your local bank or to use a debit or credit card to buy things.
-
Once its approved, its automatically drafted into their bank accounts or mailed to them. You don't need ID to cash your check at your local bank or to use a debit or credit card to buy things.
If they get SS, presumably they have a SS card no?
-
Not really. The majority of elderly people don't have personal identification. They simply can't afford to buy one much less wait in a long line to get one. Even with an expired ID, it is still acceptable for use. So it would actually be akin to a poll tax. Most people in the South try to stay off the government radar as much as possible so they don't want to have to present ID in fear of being arrest, being served with a lawsuit, or foreclosure....there's a number of ways that information can be misused
We already have to register in order to vote which can be done by mail and is free so this additional requirement is simply ridiculous. The GOP is obviously attempting to stifle the minority vote but it will in fact backfire
Pretty shameful, but other than "lower taxes" what else do they stand for lately? Oppose anything Obama does even though they may have been for it in the past? Or just oppose Obama on as much as possible no matter what?
-
So requiring an ID to vote is shameful?
Oh fuck that!
Everyone should show SS Number and Valid ID in order to vote IMHO
-
If they get SS, presumably they have a SS card no?
Yes, but you can get your SS card for no charge. But its not photo identification which you have to pay for so it would not be accepted if given the new rules. Not to mention that again, you only have to present that SS card once to receive benefits...you would not need it again
-
So requiring an ID to vote is shameful?
Oh fuck that!
Everyone should show SS Number and Valid ID in order to vote IMHO
Well, would you give your social security number and ID to a volunteer poll worker??? What would stop them from committing identity theft..... ::)
-
Yes, but you can get your SS card for no charge. But its not photo identification which you have to pay for so it would not be accepted if given the new rules. Not to mention that again, you only have to present that SS card once to receive benefits...you would not need it again
If you have a SS card - presumably you have a BC as well. a BC with embossed seal is valid ID.
-
So requiring an ID to vote is shameful?
Oh fuck that!
Everyone should show SS Number and Valid ID in order to vote IMHO
For voting purposes, once registered, an expired ID and SS would be enough.
-
Well, would you give your social security number and ID to a volunteer poll worker??? What would stop them from committing identity theft..... ::)
I volunteer my time every four years as an election law lawyer and have been to Florida, NYC, and PA, and can tell you first hand I have been witness to voting fraud in person.
NYC is by far the worse.
Florida believe it or not, had the best behaved voters.
I was in Pittsburgh in 2008 and what I saw was insane. Not so much fraud - but obamamania as if the 2nd coming was happening.
-
If you have a SS card - presumably you have a BC as well. a BC with embossed seal is valid ID.
The requirement is for a government issued unexpired photo identification...so a SS card would not be accepted at the polls if the rule went into effect. Not to mention that you would not want to show someone your SS card
-
I volunteer my time every four years as an election law lawyer and have been to Florida, NYC, and PA, and can tell you first hand I have been witness to voting fraud in person.
NYC is by far the worse.
Florida believe it or not, had the best behaved voters.
I was in Pittsburgh in 2008 and what I saw was insane. Not so much fraud - but obamamania as if the 2nd coming was happening.
There's always fraud in all elections...both from the left and right. However, the amount is so miniscule that it has no bearing on the end results of an election
-
The requirement is for a government issued unexpired photo identification...so a SS card would not be accepted at the polls if the rule went into effect. Not to mention that you would not want to show someone your SS card
Don't these people get an energy bill or phone bill or something?
Personally - i dont want my vote cancelled out by some illegal mexican.
-
Don't these people get an energy bill or phone bill or something?
Personally - i dont want my vote cancelled out by some illegal mexican.
Voter registration prevents that from occurring. Illegals can't vote nor would have a way of doing so.
-
Voter registration prevents that from occurring. Illegals can't vote nor would have a way of doing so.
not true - there are many examples of illegals voting.
-
So requiring an ID to vote is shameful?
Oh fuck that!
Everyone should show SS Number and Valid ID in order to vote IMHO
And be able to have a decent handle on the English language, too.
-
LOL at ppl being against this, even more saying that its aimed at minorities...
Vince I bet your for having to show a valid photo id to buy alcohol...but to elect a president, we should just take you at your word I guess?
idiots
-
Horrible, if you require a valid ID to vote how are you going to bus in illegal immigrants and have them vote? What about the dead?
Will anyone think about reanimated corpses and those that are in this country illegally!!!!!
-
Not really. The majority of elderly people don't have personal identification. They simply can't afford to buy one much less wait in a long line to get one.
Bullshit - prove it.
It's like $15 in my state.