November 4, 2008
Voter Intimidation in Philly?
First, there were reports that Republican poll workers were thrown out of polling places and that some of the voting machines in Philadelphia had Obama votes registered before the polls opened.
Then there's the Black Panthers, who are apparently providing "security":
Here's a report:
UPDATE:The police checked it out.
UPDATE 2:It took a couple hours, but the "r" word was thrown out there regarding this post. Believe me, if there were two Klan guys standing in front of a polling place, I'd post about it. Intimidation is intimidation, no matter where it is or who is doing it. For the record, here's an alternate view:
Jacqueline Dischell, [an] Obama volunteer...confirms that there were in fact two black panthers guarding the polling place, a nursing home on Fairmont Avenue in north Philadelphia, earlier this morning.Judge for yourself.But she says one was an officially designated poll watcher (it was not immediately clear which municipal office had designated him in that role), and the second was his friend. The second panther, who left two or three hours ago, was the one with the nightstick, she says.
Dischell says that earlier this morning a few men who identified themselves as being from the McCain campaign came and started taking pictures of the two panthers on their cell phones. She suggested that they seemed to be baiting the panthers, and that the designated watcher may have given one of them the finger in response to the picture taking.
The police came roughly an hour and a half later. She says she talked to the cops and told them there had been no incident. The police drove away without getting out of the car, she adds.
Some time later, a second, larger group of men whose affiliation couldn't be determined came with real cameras and started taking more pictures. Maybe 15 minutes later the cops returned. This time, they spoke to people on both sides, and told the panther not designated to watch the polls to leave, which he did without an argument.
"There was no fight, nothing," she says.
Fox News arrived on the scene at around that time and started interviewing people near the entrance. The building manager asked the Fox reporter to leave, she says, and he moved further from the entrance.
That's where things now stand. "There has been no fighting, no voter intimidation at all," she said.
OK, this is pure racism on AR's part. Not what is "alleged"- I mean your "news report" of it. Do need to be racist to feel good?
I have been seeing racism out of white conservative America for 40 years. I am sick of it.
How many black voters have to stand in 3 hour lines today: A LOT MORE THAN WHITES HAVE TO.
Predictable. I wondered how long before the racism charge got thrown out there. Believe me, if there were two Klan guys standing in front of a polling place, I'd post about it. Intimidation is intimidation, no matter where it is.
Posted by: Marc at November 4, 2008 3:51 PMWhat is the excuse for anyone but the police to have a nightstick at a polling place?
The racism charge above is not exactly a shock-take it for what it's worth-nothing.
Might be the first cadre of that domestic security corp "funded as well as the U.S. military" that Comrade Obama has mentioned.
Posted by: Ragin' Rhode Islander at November 4, 2008 5:36 PMA word of advice-if the Schumer/Feinstein/Kennedy/Obama consortium says "turn in your guns" just say "come and get them"-I am old enough and with a bad enough health outlook to be real comfortable with that attitude.
no quarter to those who would oppress us
joe,
You and the man with the nightstick are kindred spirits. Your "come at me" attitude and his are the same. We'd all be better off if both of you cooled.
What is puzzling though is that if he were carrying a firearm instead of a nightstick you'd be defending his right to pack his heat. What is it about a nightstick that sets you off? The 2nd Amendment does not prohibit guns from a polling place, you know, "a well armed militia, etc." carries no prohibition against guns in the polling place.
Also, that area of Fairmount Ave. is overwhelmingly black. The voters in that ward are predominately black. It is very likely that the man with the nightstick was there to insure that people would not be barred from voting. It is unreasonable to assume that a black man take it upon himself to preclude black people from voting.
No arrests were made and no one claimed that he/she was barred from exercising his/her franchise.
OldTimeLefty
OTL-you are really out of your mind comparing me with that hoodlum-I have no desire to harrass anyone trying to vote,nor key a car because of a bumper sticker-what I want is to be left the f""k alone by the government as long as I don't commit crimes and pay my taxes-got it?
The paraphrase I used about turning in guns is from uber leftist rich bitch Feinstein(who has a carry permit!)
A concealed weapon might be legal in a voting place if the person has a permit,I really don't know the local laws-do you?On the other hand a nightstick carried by a civilian in front of the door is "in your face".
Your arguments get more fatuous every time you try to dump on me.
When I went to the polls there was nobody in the doorway trying to look intimidating.
Oh yeah-what if two White hoodlums in Klan gear with sticks were in front of the polls?You'd be screaming bloody murder.Don't be a hypocrite.
Posted by: joe bernstein at November 5, 2008 6:28 AMJoe,
You are such an angry person that you miss the forest for the trees. You and the man with the nightstick are kindred in your furious anger. He has pointed his in one direction and you have pointed yours in another, but underneath you are both very angry people, this is why I say that you and he are kindred spirits.
Believe me, I’m not trying to “dump on you”. I’m trying to urge you to do a bit of introspection; a practice which the impulsive and rash nature of your response belies.
One last word on the subject - No one at the Fairmount Ave. Polling place was blocked from voting, and I’ll repeat, the polling place is in an overwhelmingly black neighborhood. It is highly unlikely that a black man was attempting to intimidate the people voting in that locale. No arrests or charges were made.
OldTimeLefty
Posted by: OldTimeLefty at November 6, 2008 8:08 PM