PREFACE
Ah yes, the Fourth of July. Celebrating our country's birthday...during a pandemic. All public gatherings cancelled, meaning all the big fireworks displays are cancelled. Meaning what are the people going to do to show their patriotism and salute America's birthday and independence from a ruling country that didn't represent our needs and wants??? Let's blow stuff up!
STORY
The Fourth of July has always been a terrible night for my sister. I've been living with her for 6 years now and even when I was living elsewhere, I would come and keep her company. She has horses. Horses tend to panic or are very stressed by the loud booming and exploding of fireworks. We live in a livestock area. An area that was founded on horse ownership and 1-acre minimum homesteading. As the 'city' encroached on the wide-open land, and the 'city dwellers' moved out of the city and into our spaces, they brought what they were running away from. They think that now that they have all this land, they can do whatever they want. But we have laws out here too. Dogs have to be on leashes. You can't plant things in the swale (the area from the road to where the sidewalk would be if there was one...also called easement). There are established trails for horses, pedestrians, and bicycles. ATVs, Gator carts, and golf carts are not allowed on these trails. Nor are they street legal. But that doesn't stop 'them' from using the trails illegally!
The mayor of our big/little town lost her horse a few years back due to a heart attack during 4th/July fireworks. She has worked hard to minimize who can shoot them off. But this year, due to COVID-19 and cancellations of firework displays, everybody thought they could have their own display! Even the GOVERNOR waived the ban on fireworks for Florida! The signs posted this year were watered down in language so that nobody paid attention to them. NO FIREWORKS WITHIN 1000 FEET OF LIVESTOCK! The fireworks started even before dark (8:30 pm) and didn't stop until 1 AM! Two of our horses were frantic during the booming and crashing and popping. Neighbors shot off illegal fireworks, the kind that go high in the air...we call mortars...and explode with a loud BOOM! All we could do was watch as the two horses ran around the ring, bucking, snorting, and in general distress. Not to mention the stress it puts on countless dogs, traumatized cats, and PTSD Veterans. 4 horses in our neighborhood died on the night of the 4th of July.
Poor Danny Boy was exhausted by 1 am and he laid down in the ring. My sister checked on him throughout the night to make sure he was still alive. The third horse is over 30 years old and didn't seem to react to it all, but she's always been very steady about it. Maybe she just can't hear it as well. Danny Boy is very young, 13 or so. His heart could have burst from all the stress. This is only the second 4th/July he's gone through down here. He's from Ohio country living. Last year was his first year, but with all the effort of our Mayor, the fireworks were very mild and didn't stress him out. But last year, the people had central places to gather and watch them. They didn't feel it necessary to blow stuff up in their yards.
CONCLUSION
Everyone has rights. The rights of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. You have the right to swing your arms if you want to, but when your arm comes in contact with the next person's nose...that's where your rights end. Other people have the right to their rights. Everyone needs to respect the rights of others, even when you have to modify your perception of your rights. We do not live in closed boxes. Or defined spaces. You can draw a property line in the sand, but that does not stop air, wind, smells, voices, or freedom. We ALL need to be better neighbors. Better neighbors in our communities, in our cities, counties, states, and in the World. Everyone is connected, despite lines drawn in the sand. Love One Another.
Showing posts with label our leaders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label our leaders. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 08, 2020
Sunday, November 11, 2018
WORKING THE ELECTION POLLS (part 1)
PREFACE
I am a poll worker. I started in 2016. What an initiation! I continue to be a poll worker. I worked the Primary election in the summer of 2018. And now I've completed the Mid-term elections of 2018. Interesting is an understatement.
STORY
I went through a 3 1/2 hour training session in the summer of 2016. The trainers went over the procedures involved for all the positions at the polls, and supervisory positions, over all polling stations. I was nervous the night before November 9th (2016) election. I barely got 90 minutes of sleep before getting up at 4 a.m. to be at the polling place at 5:30 a.m. I arrived and went to work helping set up the voting booths, the EVID machines (which I would operate one) that issue voting passes, setting up the signage outside the polling site, and whatever else needed to be done. We all pitched in to get the polls ready for the first voters to arrive and the polls to open at 7 a.m. Once the polls were officially declared OPEN, we had 75-80 voters standing outside in line ready to come in, stand in line again, and exercise their right to vote.
It was a steady pace all day, with a few lulls to take breaks for the bathroom, get water and snacks. The polling site provided lunch for the workers, and after the lunch crowd came through the polls, we took turns going "to lunch" from 1:30-2:30, so we could all be back in time for the teachers, school workers, and others who get off work earlier that 5 o'clock. We work until the polls are officially closed at 7 p.m., and beyond, as we run totals, pack up everything in a particular order, then sign official counts, post them, and account for everything. Nobody leaves until it's all done.
The 11/9/2016 day started with some controversy as a news crew brought cameras into the polling site and had to be asked to leave. Filming outside, away from the voting, is permissible. Also some voters brought cellphones in and began recording, which is NOT ALLOWED (under the law). Police had to be called to enforce some violations and objections but for the most part, it didn't escalate. There are always security people and off-duty police at the polling sites, just in case rules have to be enforced. We all know the outcome of the 2016 election. We didn't know anything until after 7 p.m., when the site hosting the voting poll turned on the TVs and we got caught up with the news. And 2016 kept everyone in suspense until the next morning.
When we work the polls, we have no exposure to the news the entire day. We are not allowed to use our cellphones (except for emergencies). We are instructed NOT to try to find out what's happening outside the polls and are not allowed to leave the site until the polls are officially closed. Suffice to say, we DO NOT express any political favor to voters while working the polls. Nonpartisan interaction only; no decals, icons, political T-shirts, opinions, etc.... We can help voters in particular ways that do not involve influencing their vote, only facilitating it. So it's 15 hours of isolation for us, and suppressing our own opinions and curiosity. It is a privilege to help insure the purity of the voting process.
CONCLUSION
No matter what the outcome, or your reaction to it, the voting process is a privilege (and a RIGHT in this country) that should be exercised whenever possible. These are human beings that we put in charge of making decisions about our lives. Even if you don't see it in the day-to-day, their decisions effect us. How they vote on laws. What laws they create. If they protect the laws and keep us safe, or are only interested in what their political position can do to enhance their own lives. We are the watchdogs! We cannot vote and then sit back and HOPE for the best. Our leaders are accountable to US. We the People! Our taxes pay their salaries. Our taxes pay for the services they provide to us. WE ARE THEIR BOSSES! VOTE, LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!
I am a poll worker. I started in 2016. What an initiation! I continue to be a poll worker. I worked the Primary election in the summer of 2018. And now I've completed the Mid-term elections of 2018. Interesting is an understatement.
STORY
I went through a 3 1/2 hour training session in the summer of 2016. The trainers went over the procedures involved for all the positions at the polls, and supervisory positions, over all polling stations. I was nervous the night before November 9th (2016) election. I barely got 90 minutes of sleep before getting up at 4 a.m. to be at the polling place at 5:30 a.m. I arrived and went to work helping set up the voting booths, the EVID machines (which I would operate one) that issue voting passes, setting up the signage outside the polling site, and whatever else needed to be done. We all pitched in to get the polls ready for the first voters to arrive and the polls to open at 7 a.m. Once the polls were officially declared OPEN, we had 75-80 voters standing outside in line ready to come in, stand in line again, and exercise their right to vote.
It was a steady pace all day, with a few lulls to take breaks for the bathroom, get water and snacks. The polling site provided lunch for the workers, and after the lunch crowd came through the polls, we took turns going "to lunch" from 1:30-2:30, so we could all be back in time for the teachers, school workers, and others who get off work earlier that 5 o'clock. We work until the polls are officially closed at 7 p.m., and beyond, as we run totals, pack up everything in a particular order, then sign official counts, post them, and account for everything. Nobody leaves until it's all done.
The 11/9/2016 day started with some controversy as a news crew brought cameras into the polling site and had to be asked to leave. Filming outside, away from the voting, is permissible. Also some voters brought cellphones in and began recording, which is NOT ALLOWED (under the law). Police had to be called to enforce some violations and objections but for the most part, it didn't escalate. There are always security people and off-duty police at the polling sites, just in case rules have to be enforced. We all know the outcome of the 2016 election. We didn't know anything until after 7 p.m., when the site hosting the voting poll turned on the TVs and we got caught up with the news. And 2016 kept everyone in suspense until the next morning.
When we work the polls, we have no exposure to the news the entire day. We are not allowed to use our cellphones (except for emergencies). We are instructed NOT to try to find out what's happening outside the polls and are not allowed to leave the site until the polls are officially closed. Suffice to say, we DO NOT express any political favor to voters while working the polls. Nonpartisan interaction only; no decals, icons, political T-shirts, opinions, etc.... We can help voters in particular ways that do not involve influencing their vote, only facilitating it. So it's 15 hours of isolation for us, and suppressing our own opinions and curiosity. It is a privilege to help insure the purity of the voting process.
CONCLUSION
No matter what the outcome, or your reaction to it, the voting process is a privilege (and a RIGHT in this country) that should be exercised whenever possible. These are human beings that we put in charge of making decisions about our lives. Even if you don't see it in the day-to-day, their decisions effect us. How they vote on laws. What laws they create. If they protect the laws and keep us safe, or are only interested in what their political position can do to enhance their own lives. We are the watchdogs! We cannot vote and then sit back and HOPE for the best. Our leaders are accountable to US. We the People! Our taxes pay their salaries. Our taxes pay for the services they provide to us. WE ARE THEIR BOSSES! VOTE, LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
