Chris Matthews is a jackass

I'm watching the 'debate' on the local NBC station right now ...this is supposed to be a debate among Jim Davis, Charlie Crist, and Max Linn (the 3 gents running for Florida Governor)- moderated by Chris Matthews. I've watched Chris Matthews on Hardball a few times and am always struck by how incredibly RUDE he is. We don't need more of this impolite behavior in politics. What we NEED is honest debate.

What we have this evening is Chris Matthews blathering on and interrupting the candidates. Each candidate should be asked the same question and have the opportunity to respond to that question. Matthews is trying to run this 'debate' the way he would run Hardball. It doesn't work.

Prior to this evening's show (it's more of a show than a debate), Matthews had said that he considered '5 words' to be the ideal question. Hell, his interruptions of the candidates are each more than 5 words.

I'm afraid NBC has demonstrated that the networks cannot be trusted to broadcast honest political coverage. NBC is a business; they are in it for the bucks, and there is nothing wrong with that ...except when it comes to our elections.

Florida voting machines changing votes

Here in Florida we are able to take advantage of early voting. So tomorrow I'll be heading to the local library and will carefully cast my votes. I'll report back on how it went. I'm rather distrustful of the voting machines, since there is NO paper trail, and therefore no way to do a recount. All we can do is trust that the machines will tally votes correctly and that the totals from the individual machines are properly combined.

Well, I'm a computer programmer, so I know that it is easy to write programs with errors. It is easy to also write programs with intentional 'errors'. It is a much more involved task to write quality programs and to then design and execute detailed test plans to ensure that the programming operates as it should.

An article from Saturday's Miami Herald describes multiple instances during our current early voting cycle in which voters saw their votes for Democrats displayed as votes for Republicans on the confirmation screen.

When you vote:

1. Review your ballot carefully before removing your voting card
2. If ANY of your candidate selections are incorrect when reviewing, inform a poll worker immediately.
3. Go back and attempt to correct your selection. If you still are unable to make your selections, ask for the poll site supervisor to shut down the machine, and write down the machine number, the poll site supervisor name, and ask for another voting machine to made available.
4. Report all irregularities to your local political party (for me, here in Hillsborough County in Florida, that is the Democratic Party (813-876-1945)

It's a very scary time when we cannot trust our elections.

Wasp sting - not fun

Two weeks ago I was pushing my way through the bamboo in our back yard and 'discovered' a wasp nest. It was about the size of a deck of cards. My first clue was the searing pain on my right arm. After flailing wildly while running inside, I doused the sting area with some vinegar to help neutralize the venom. The image here was take 2 days later (10 Oct) when the discomfort was the worst. You can't really tell here, but my arm was quite red from the sting site down about halfway onto the forearm. I was working from home when I took this picture, and spent a good part of the day typing with my arm resting on a bag of ice. I was also downing antihistamine and some acetaminophen. That night I had some liquid anesthetic ;)

Well, after administering the immediate first aid on Sting Day, I had to exact my revenge. I grabbed a can of wasp spray in each hand (basically nerve gas for bugs - bad stuff - and very cool, since it shoots a stream about 30 feet) ...and then went back to the scene of the crime and kicked at the bamboo. The wasps came swarming out and I blasted a steady stream out of both cans, criss-crossing the poison jets as the poor little guys dropped to the ground. That's when I spotted the nest that I had dislodged. Until this time, I'd thought the nest was intact, and I'd merely disturbed it.

Wasps, unlike bees, do not die when they sting. They will sting and sting and sting until they no longer feel threatened. My guess is that it was a single wasp that got me, but the angry little warrior had a bit of a field day on my arm and jabbed a few times before bidding adieu. By Wednesday (11 Oct) it felt like I had a small pillow under my elbow ...since it was a bit swollen and rather mushy.

So now it is 2 weeks after the sting. The discomfort is completely gone, and the discoloration is almost gone. It's amazing the effect these little critters can have!

East Hillsborough Democratic Club

Last night Shirley and I went to a 'Meet the Candidates' rally, sponsored by the East Hillsborough Democratic Club. Gosh, it felt like coming home, to pull into the parking area and see all the signs, bumper stickers, t-shirts, and buttons for the progressive candidates. What a wonderful evening. We'd heard about the rally through Joyce at our Brandon Drinking Liberally regular Thursday gathering (7pm every Thursday at Old Chicago Pizza in Brandon map ...we ususally sit in the outdoor area - this IS Florida, after all).

Well, we knew about the rally, but I didn't know much about the local Democrat club. What a great group! We plan to be at the next meeting. The East Hillsborough Democratic Club meets on the 2nd Tuesday of each month, from 6:30pm - 8:30pm, at the Valrico Recreation Center (map). So the next meeting will be 14 Nov 2006. See you there!

East Hillsborough Democratic Club - Meet the candidates this Friday (Oct 20)

The East Hillsborough Democratic Club is sponsoring a rally at the Barn at
Winthrop (map) on Friday, October 20th from 5:00 to 7:00 pm.  We will have local,
state and Congressional candidates in attendance.  There will be live
music, food and drinks.  We would like to get over 200 people out there so
mark your calendars!!!  With the media anticipated to be in attendance,
this is an opportunity to show that Democrats plan to reclaim eastern
Hillsborough County.

Directions: Take Providence to Bloomingdale, and turn left on Bloomingdale.  The
barn is 1/4 - 1/2 mile on the right (map).