
NobodysHome |

At least you'll be able to go to the head of the line and get the hell out of there fast?
That's my hope. But it's my first time dropping off someone else's ballot. They may need ID or something. The envelope specifically lists who's allowed to drop off your ballot for you, so I may need some proof that I'm married to her.
I guess I'll find out over lunch...

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Wow...polling place was backed out to the street at 8 a.m. this morning in Omaha (La Vista), Nebraska. Haven't seen that before, ever.
Besides the presidential election, we had some local board and judges, as well as a congressional race. Also big ticket is a repeal of the state legislature's repeal of the death penalty.
Big day, all around. Good to see people taking it seriously.
NE-2, go Blue!
It's selfish of me, but my ideal election result is Nebraska splitting and the electoral college coming down to that one vote.

Captain Battletoad |
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RainyDayNinja wrote:Still debating between voting third-party, or writing in Harambe (PBUH).My write-ins were "no confidence", because I couldn't resist the word play and it was entirely accurate of my opinion of those who were running unopposed for those offices.
Do you want Emperor Palpatine? Because that's how you get Emperor Palpatine.

Khelreddin |
1 person marked this as a favorite. |

Just voted, and I'll agree with the folks up-thread predicting huge turnout. My polling place was the most crowded I've seen it in multiple cycles, though at least part of that is due to there being lots of early and mail voting in my area so polling places have consolidated. In any case, glad to have done it, seen my neighbors there with their kids, all experiencing something historic.

Ambrosia Slaad |

AdmiralAckbar wrote:Wait, which Palpatine: Ian McDiarmid or Seth MacFarlane? 'Cause I wouldn't immediately rule out MacFarlane Palps.I despise Seth MacFarlane (except for the first 4 seasons of Family Guy and a decent amount of American Dad), but that's just me.
Yeah, I hate most of MacFarlane's work too, but I enjoy his voiceovers on Robot Chicken for some reason.

Kryzbyn |

Kryzbyn wrote:Wow...polling place was backed out to the street at 8 a.m. this morning in Omaha (La Vista), Nebraska. Haven't seen that before, ever.
Besides the presidential election, we had some local board and judges, as well as a congressional race. Also big ticket is a repeal of the state legislature's repeal of the death penalty.
Big day, all around. Good to see people taking it seriously.NE 2, go Blue!
It's selfish of me, but my ideal election result is Nebraska splitting and the electoral college coming down to that one vote.
From what I was hearing in line, we are in no danger of becoming a blue state :)

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KingOfAnything wrote:From what I was hearing in line, we are in no danger of becoming a blue state :)NE 2, go Blue!
It's selfish of me, but my ideal election result is Nebraska splitting and the electoral college coming down to that one vote.
The electoral college vote for the 2nd congressional district in Nebraska (aka Omaha & surroundings) is allocated separately from the rest of the state.
That one district is at roughly a 50-50 split between Clinton and Trump.

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You know, I've been kind of distracted and fidgety today, and I think I just figured out why: I think I'm nervous about voting tonight. I live right next door to my local polling place, and there are enough non-white folks in my area that we could very well be a target for Trump's call for his followers to "watch the polls". The thought has crossed my mind that there's a very real possibility of something happening beyond just vague intimidation, and it's got me a little worried.

captain yesterday |

AdmiralAckbar wrote:Wait, which Palpatine: Ian McDiarmid or Seth MacFarlane? 'Cause I wouldn't immediately rule out MacFarlane Palps.I despise Seth MacFarlane (except for the first 4 seasons of Family Guy and a decent amount of American Dad), but that's just me.
I like MacFarlane, but he's kind of dated.
H. Jon Benjamin is the be all voice for today. :-)

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You know, I've been kind of distracted and fidgety today, and I think I just figured out why: I think I'm nervous about voting tonight. I live right next door to my local polling place, and there are enough non-white folks in my area that we could very well be a target for Trump's call for his followers to "watch the polls". The thought has crossed my mind that there's a very real possibility of something happening beyond just vague intimidation, and it's got me a little worried.
I suspect it will probably be ok.
I mean... these are people who are afraid of 'others' as a matter of general principle. They aren't likely to go into an area where they are 'outnumbered' by 'those people' and start making trouble.
Now, if Trump had ANY sort of 'ground game' organization which could get like minded groups together to 'watch' polling places en masse... that might have been a different story. However, left on their own, most frightened people aren't going to do anything.

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Jiggy wrote:You know, I've been kind of distracted and fidgety today, and I think I just figured out why: I think I'm nervous about voting tonight. I live right next door to my local polling place, and there are enough non-white folks in my area that we could very well be a target for Trump's call for his followers to "watch the polls". The thought has crossed my mind that there's a very real possibility of something happening beyond just vague intimidation, and it's got me a little worried.I suspect it will probably be ok.
I mean... these are people who are afraid of 'others' as a matter of general principle. They aren't likely to go into an area where they are 'outnumbered' by 'those people' and start making trouble.
Now, if Trump had ANY sort of 'ground game' organization which could get like minded groups together to 'watch' polling places en masse... that might have been a different story. However, left on their own, most frightened people aren't going to do anything.
That's the thing, though: my area is still mostly white. The non-white population is big enough to be noticeable, but also not big enough to outnumber the whites. That's why I'm worried.
@Rednal — I actually have no line of sight from where I live, so I would only see anything while I'm there. I'll definitely have my phone with me, though.

Norman Osborne |

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Besides the presidential election, we had some local board and judges, as well as a congressional race. Also big ticket is a repeal of the state legislature's repeal of the death penalty.
That ballot issue is amusingly obtuse (Yay mandated language!). Vote to RETAIN the legislature's repeal of the death penalty in order to abolish the practice*, or vote to REPEAL the bill in order to reinstate the right for the state to perform executions.
Spoilering my opinions to avoid political derail, but a quick rant.
This ballot measure is very silly. The legislature overrode the governor's veto to repeal the death penalty for very good reasons. Nebraska hasn't performed an execution in something like 20 years, the appeals process is super expensive, and execution is generally regarded by the religious community as unethical.
So, vote RETAIN to repeal the death penalty!

Norman Osborne |

Actually - I'm going to go a bit contrarian.
Only vote for stuff if you've actually done your research. Don't just vote a party line without knowing who the heck most of the people you're voting for are. I know that I didn't vote for every position. (Though it does amuse me to vote for the people running unopposed.)
I wish more people felt like that.

Captain Battletoad |
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Kryzbyn wrote:Besides the presidential election, we had some local board and judges, as well as a congressional race. Also big ticket is a repeal of the state legislature's repeal of the death penalty.That ballot issue is amusingly obtuse (Yay mandated language!). Vote to RETAIN the legislature's repeal of the death penalty in order to abolish the practice*, or vote to REPEAL the bill in order to retain the right for the state to perform executions.
Spoilering my opinions to avoid political derail, but a quick rant.
** spoiler omitted **
20 years? Wow, here in Texas it's been almost 4 weeks. In fact, I was just by Huntsville (where we have Death Row) this weekend.

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Actually - I'm going to go a bit contrarian.
Only vote for stuff if you've actually done your research. Don't just vote a party line without knowing who the heck most of the people you're voting for are. I know that I didn't vote for every position.
I respect that viewpoint, and maybe 20 years ago or more it would have been more valid. Unfortunately, in today's "block everything the other party tries to do, no questions asked" political climate, doing this all but guarantees more crippling gridlock. No matter what party you align with, voting for a presidential candidate, and then sending folks from the opposing party to congress all but insures that little can be accomplished.
I agree 100% the people should be well-versed, or at least familiar with the candidates opinions and politics, but if they can't be bothered to do that beyond knowing who they want for president, then the least they can do is vote that presidential candidate's party line.
We don't live in a perfect world, and we don't have a perfect system. If you vote for the president, you really owe it to her (or him) to give her (or him) a congress that will actually work with her (or him) to accomplish things.

Chris Lambertz Community & Digital Content Director |
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Removed a passive aggressive insult and responses to it. Folks, just as I indicated yesterday in the election thread: take a new look at our Community Guidelines, focus on discussing ideas (not other thread participants), and try to keep the conversation civil. Our moderation team is trying to provide as fair as a space as is possible in the election-related threads, and taking a step back from making a heated/inflammatory comment is of a great help to us and everyone else in this thread.

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I respect that viewpoint, and maybe 20 years ago or more it would have been more valid. Unfortunately, in today's "block everything the other party tries to do, no questions asked" political climate, doing this all but guarantees more crippling gridlock.
I prefer to call it "awesome gridlock". Both sides suck - and the less either of them can do, the better off we all are. :P

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Marc Radle wrote:I respect that viewpoint, and maybe 20 years ago or more it would have been more valid. Unfortunately, in today's "block everything the other party tries to do, no questions asked" political climate, doing this all but guarantees more crippling gridlock.I prefer to call it "awesome gridlock". Both sides suck - and the less either of them can do, the better off we all are. :P
Better off some people are.

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Charon's Little Helper wrote:Better off some people are.Marc Radle wrote:I respect that viewpoint, and maybe 20 years ago or more it would have been more valid. Unfortunately, in today's "block everything the other party tries to do, no questions asked" political climate, doing this all but guarantees more crippling gridlock.I prefer to call it "awesome gridlock". Both sides suck - and the less either of them can do, the better off we all are. :P
Specifically, the people least in need of help.

Kryzbyn |
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Kryzbyn wrote:Besides the presidential election, we had some local board and judges, as well as a congressional race. Also big ticket is a repeal of the state legislature's repeal of the death penalty.That ballot issue is amusingly obtuse (Yay mandated language!). Vote to RETAIN the legislature's repeal of the death penalty in order to abolish the practice*, or vote to REPEAL the bill in order to reinstate the right for the state to perform executions.
Spoilering my opinions to avoid political derail, but a quick rant.
** spoiler omitted **

Ambrosia Slaad |

I think the real question we need to ask ourselves is, what should I be drinking tonight? I need to stop by the liquor store to pick up something that would go well with watching election results. I can't decide between malt scotch, bourbon, rum, or bleach.
Just allow yourself extra time. I stopped by Total Wine yesterday before noon; they were packed and running low on items. I only had three bottles and it took me almost a half hour.

Haladir |
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I voted this morning at 6:45 AM. There was no one else at the polling place other than the five election officials. I was the 50th person to vote since that polling place opened at 6:00 AM.
I live less than a block from my polling place, so the whole voting experience, including walking to and from the polls took me about 15 minutes.
I consider myself very lucky to live where I live.

Captain Battletoad |

Captain Battletoad wrote:I think the real question we need to ask ourselves is, what should I be drinking tonight? I need to stop by the liquor store to pick up something that would go well with watching election results. I can't decide between malt scotch, bourbon, rum, or bleach.Just allow yourself extra time. I stopped by Total Wine yesterday before noon; they were packed and running low on items. I only had three bottles and it took me almost a half hour.
The closest Total Wine to me is ~35 minutes away, so I unfortunately have to settle for Spec's. It shouldn't be too bad though, as the one I'm going to isn't generally crowded after I leave the office. Right now I'm in a toss-up between Sotol and a bottle of Highland Park 12.

Haladir |
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Most people who vote as a result of such "Get Out the Vote" efforts do no research whatsoever on the propositions or other down-ballot stuff, and instead just read the blurb on the ballot itself and make their snap judgements based on what they read.
Considering California's uber-broken initiative process, where you can hide inconvenient facts, this is BAD (Blurb: "Fund hospitals"! Subtext: "Oh, but we're also cutting school funding and blocking the legislature from applying any future oversight to these funds, even if they get misused.")
I am very glad to live in a state without a robust culture of ballot initiatives. My objection to them is pretty much what NH said: it's too easy to manipulate the wording of initiatives to trick people who haven't researched the issues into voting against how they really feel.
There's an initiaitve on the ballot in Florida that, if you read the first line, looks like a "Yes" vote would be in support of solar power. But a "Yes" vote actually removes net metering, which greatly reduces the individual incentives to actually install solar power; other states which enacted similar legislation saw new solar installations drop by a factor of five or more!
There were only six offices on the ballot in my voting district: President, US Senate, US Representative, NY State Senate, NY State Assembly, city district attorney. No initiatives, no ammendments.

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In my area there's a thing for taking away local legislators' ability to raise their own salaries, instead moving that power to a council of citizens. Of course, the council would be appointed by the politicians, so it might not actually change anything, but I can't see it making anything worse, so I figure it's worth a shot.

Pillbug Toenibbler |

There's an initiaitve on the ballot in Florida that, if you read the first line, looks like a "Yes" vote would be in support of solar power. But a "Yes" vote actually removes net metering, which greatly reduces the individual incentives to actually install solar power; other states which enacted similar legislation saw new solar installations drop by a factor of five or more!
Yeah, that's Amendment 1. The TV and Internet ads for it have all been very deceptive, promising to protect the elderly from scams(?!) and offering benefits to homeowners that already exist under current Florida laws and regulations. The big benefit is that it allows commercial property owners (not homeowners) to exclude solar-based improvements from their tax assessments. Since commercial property owners would be paying less taxes and government isn't going to decrease spending, homeowners would likely be the ones seeing their taxes increase to offset the loss... which directly contradicts the "you won't subsidize solar owners" claim in the ads.
(FWIW, everyone I know personally is voting No on it.)