Why the UAE controlled Co. and DIEBOLD are related

[Vinnie From Indy]

It is quite amusing to watch the hysteria on the right concerning the take over of American ports by a private company. The GOP from Maine to California are now bellowing and thumping their chests about how America's security is at grave risk if we allow private companies to control our ports. The security of our ports, it seems, is a much bigger deal to the GOP than the security of our elections. I hope that Democrats will inject the "privatization" of our voting into the UAE port deal debate. The implications of non secure voting and non secure ports are equally as grave and both concern the control of vital national security systems by private companies without proper oversight.

[autorank]

1. We outsourced the elections so we could outsource the ports!!!

Vinnie From Indly, :yourock:

What a terrific point.

RECOMMENDED.

[mom cat]

2. K&R Good idea. Deal with both national security issues and show

their interrelationship!

[peacetalksforall]

3. Please remind them that social security may be dead, but water and

roads are next.

Have you read anything about Bechtel and Boliva - Bechetel trying to privatize the water of Bolivia and convince people it is a good deal.

[Peace Patriot]

4. And the Bolivians threw Bechtel out of their country--and elected one of

leaders of that movement--Evo Morales--the first indigenous president of Bolivia, just recently.

That's how to deal with corporations that get uppity!

As for the two main rightwing Bushite corporations which are now controlling our elections, with "TRADE SECRET," PROPRIETARY programming, one of them is Diebold which, until last month, was CEOed by a Bush/Cheney campaign chair and major donor. The other, ES&S, is a spinoff from Diebold (similar computer architecture) and was initially funded by rightwingnut Howard Ahmanson, who also gave a million dollars to the nutso "Christian" Chalcedon Foundation (who tout execution for homosexuals, among other things). The two companies have an incestuous relationship--they are run by two brothers, Todd and Bob Urosevich.

These are the people who are counting our votes behind a veil of secrecy.

And this completely corrupt, non-transparent election system was made possible by two of the most corrupt people in Washington DC, Tom Delay and Bob Ney. Yup, it was their baby. (--helped along by Dem Senator Christopher Dodd-CT). No controls on partisan vendors. No paper trail requirement. No controls on lavish lobbying or "revolving door" employment. No controls on secret industry 'testing' of the machines. (Extremely hackable, insecure machines.) Way underfunded regulators. And a $4 billion electronic voting boondoggle from the feds to the states, to cement the corruption.

They gave us George Bush & Co. for four more horrible years--and a river of tears. And now they're selling our port facilities--and our very security--to the sheiks of the United Arab Emirates, a fundamentalist theocracy.

We bought a "lemon" in this election system--or, rather, our corrupted state and county election officials bought it for us.

Throw Diebold and ES&S election theft machines into 'Boston Harbor' NOW!

[Peace Patriot]

5. Some election reform resources:

www.votersunite.org (MythBreakers - easy primer on electronic voting--one of the myths is that HAVA requires electronic voting; it does not.)
www.verfiedvoting.org (great activist site)
www.UScountvotes.org (monitoring of '06 and '08 elections)
www.solarbus.org/election/index.shtml (fab compendium of all election info)
www.freepress.org (devoted to election reform)
www.TruthIsAll.net (analysis of the 2004 election)
Sign the petition (Russ Holt, HR 550, great bill-has 169 sponsors). http://www.rushholt.com/petition.html
www.debrabowen.com (Calif Senator running for Sec of State to reform election system)

Also of interest:

Bob Koehler (-- four recent election reform initiatives in Ohio, predicted to win by 60/40 votes, were flipped over, on election day, into 60/40 LOSSES!--the biggest flipover we've seen yet; the election theft machines and their masters are now dictating election policy!)
www.tmsfeatures.com/tmsfeatures/subcategory.jsp?file=20051124ctnbk-a.txt&catid=1824&code=ctnbk

Amaryllis (Diebold, ES&S, Sequoia lavish lobbying of election officials - Beverly Hilton, Aug. '05)
www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x380340

[peacetalksforall]

6. I think Hagel's name should be mentioned every time we write about

the machines and their software and technicians.

Give me a clue - what did Dodd to - I'd like to go read something - unless you can make it easy on me and 'link me up'.

[Wilms]

7. K&R n/t

[understandinglife]

8. K&R.

Peace.

[iconocrastic]

9. I'm with you but ...

From what I have heard in the MSM, the Dubai government controls the port management company, so it's not a private company as we think of it. The British company that currently has the contract, I believe, is a private company.

[Vinnie From Indy]

10. You are correct about that

My point was more focused on the issue of security of vital national interests rather than the distinction of ownership structure between P&O and the Dubai company. You are correct though and the point you make is also a reason to reconsider the port deal. Governments are not solely profit oriented as are corporations. That fact makes the ownership of the Dubai company cause for discussion.

[iconocrastic]

11. Now I'm confused.

Are you against ownership by a private company, or you against ownership by a government-owned company?

Here is your original statement... "It is quite amusing to watch the hysteria on the right concerning the take over of American ports by a private company."