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Why is there nothing being done to insure that there is a paper trail of votes or that citizens can confirm that the person they voted for actually got their vote? With all of the talk about how Diebold is wholly owned by the Republican party, why are there no safeguards being put in place to make sure the elections are fair?

The Democrats are afraid to offend, maybe?

I have to agree with Nasia. Unfortunately, this is part of a subtle attempt to disenfranchise African-Americans from American Society. In the last few years, neither the Democrats nor the Republicans have done anything to improve the status of African-Americans.

Is there really a question about whether or not machines are being racist?

It is not a question of the machines. As we all know, they are unbiased. However, the person monitoring the machine is not. The way voting works in the USA allows for shady dealings to occur. You are assigned voting locations based on your residence. Most Blacks (myself included) live in areas that predominantly black. Simply stated, those votes can be tampered with. A large percentage of blacks vote Democ. For example, instead of only receiving 5% republican vote in these neighborhoods, they can rig machines to allow Republicans to receive 15% or more. I, myself, do not believe my vote will be counted correctly.

The Republicans were caught, and got away with, using a list of 44,000 African American Florida voters in 2000, then were caught again in 2002 drawing up a similar list. After a loud outcry, Rove & Co. changed their tactics.
In 2004, an intimidating threat was issued to send challangers to every polling place in the nation, few were challanged, but that was part of Rove's plan - and the damage was done.
Another tactic seen in 2004 was to "starve" the infrastructure of likely democratic strongholds - Ohio is a great example. It's currently the "favored" Republican approach.
Given these and other tactics, why shouldn't African Americans fear for their votes?

Hmmm, before the last election, I did not receive my absentee ballot. When I went to the election commission to inquire about it, I found that my city's name had been misspelled (one letter had been omitted)although the zip code was correct. This was an input error and not my fault. I stood inline with other angry residents who had not received theirs for the same reason.

I am Black, live in a relatively diverse city in the US Rocky Mountain West and was a registered Dem at the time. I have since changed parties to Republican as a ploy to get my absentee ballot and have had no problems since.

I care for neither of the two major parties, but I refuse to let either prevent me from voting.

And yes, I suspect that my vote was not counted when I had to use the replacement absentee ballot. As a fake Republican, I suspect it will.

The overwhelming majority of complaints about voting irregularitys occur in Democratic controlled districts. Mr Bennett might want to look this up for himself. If African-Americans(sic) have a problem, consult with Dr Dean.

When they had problems with paper ballots, some states switched to electronic ballots, now they are saying it's not good enough.

In 2000, Gore won the popular vote, so Democrats said he should have won (even though our electoral system does not go by popular vote).

In 2004, Bush won by 3 million popular votes, so the Democrats said he must have cheated.

Can the Dems make up their minds about anything other than their hatred for Bush?

Booth rigging and cheating in counting in elections are supposed to be the specialities of 3rd world countries. US of A is going back to the dark ages. I am not an American or black. I had respect for the USA; it is fast coming down, b'se of the selfish politicians now ruling.

QUOTE: "I have to agree with Nasia. Unfortunately, this is part of a subtle attempt to disenfranchise African-Americans from American Society. In the last few years, neither the Democrats nor the Republicans have done anything to improve the status of African-Americans."

Nothing could be further from the truth. Systemic agenda's are in place to supplant African-Americans. Tell the truth and shame the devil! More focus has been placed on the so-called war effort and "legitimizing" illegal aliens, including out-sourcing, even for the working professional. WTH? Any wonder that this country is in total shambles? Government is no longer, "for the people, by the people," but rather, lining the pockets of greedy politicians that give less than a rat's arse about the American people.

Perhaps the question should be:
Who is counting the votes?

A good point made on another aspect of this by Andrew Rawnsley in The Observer UK:
"While America's mood is volatile, its democracy is becoming atrophied. And by design. The gerrymandering of seats to permanently fix their political complexion has made it extraordinarily difficult to dislodge incumbents."

The problem lies in people still stuck in race mentality. If you ask someone what they are they answer "I'm white" or "I'm African-American" I had woman on the street ask me my race and nationality once and I had her frustrated as could be when I would only tell her that it so happened that I was American. Just American. All she said for about 5 minutes was "But what are you?" and I would give her the same answer. Too many Americans are trying to put themselves in the smallest box possible in what is a self-perpetuating race struggle caused by people of all descents who still seem themselves as a particular race. As for one party or the other looking for a certain "race vote." Its wrong and racist to try and get the "black vote." Candidates should be out getting votes from citizens, not certain groups of people who think they're a more important group of citizens.

It is a waste of time to perpetuate myths regarding race and the electoral process. Racism is rampant. What else is new? The voting processes are not about the color of the electorate's skin, but about the process of filing and counting votes. Until the egocentricity vanishes from the arguments, the dialog will continually bog-down with racial commentary and the real focus will be lost. The Nation is failing to represent its people!! The question now is, "what can we do to invalidate/exorcise Congress' mandate regarding at least 37 states employing voting "machines" - technically, these machines are simply computers and as such are vulnerable to manipulation and programmed bias. If Bush won in 2000, it was the Supreme Court's fault for enabling the debacle and the population allowing it. If Ohio and it's Governor corrupted the 2004 election, again rewarding it to Bush, it is strike-two against a high-jacked nation. What will the population do to correct the faults before strike three occurs? The U.S. can not stand another strike from this Republican administration! Speak-out and remove those Congressional leaders who will not support a full investigation into the failed election processes which have occurred everywhere in the U.S. The author, Gore Vidal states it eloquently in Imperial America....sadly, read it and weep.

I don't beleive that who's vote is counted and who's is not is what will matter. The Democrats will win, once again, the popular vote. One thing, however, will keep the Republicans in both the House and Senate: Gerrymandering. Without an independent state or federal body to draw district lines the party in power will tend to stay in power so long as it can decide how to group the balance of registered voters in their favour.

A good first step for anyone worried their vote may not count is: www.canivote.org to find out if you at registered, locate your polling place and hours, and find out what ID is required. The site also offers a list of states that offer online voter registration lookup tools. Information is power.