Takin' the Blog for a Walk

resurrections

Posted by Brien Lee on April 8, 2012

8) my favorite things, counting cranes, politics, let us pray

Happy Easter and Chag Pesach Sameach! Am wishing you a holiday as nice as this great spring weather. 

I'll be heading off to Easter Mass in a few, but in the mean time I'd like to resurrect several recent blog topics.

There's at least two things to mention since I last talked about Tuesday's primary in my last post. First, Kathy Nickolaus was asked by County Exec. Dan Vrakas to either step aside from the recall elections or face being asked to resign after Tuesday's mechanical breakdown. She chose to remove herself from the recall. Mechanical breakdown = human error, but not necessarily hers. After the recount, absolutely nothing could go wrong with the next election, and it did. Hopefully, with only 4 weeks to prepare, the May recall primary will run more smoothly. 

Sub-gate. Waukesha D.A. Brad Schimel will investigate the legality of subs for votes. Gov. Romney was handing out free Cousin's subs on election day. He could legally give away things having value of less than a dollar. I picked up Cousin's subs for lunch yesterday. Bought three of the least expensive sandwiches on the menu for $5.00 each.  

There's one thing I didn't mention about my election experience Tuesday. We screwed up. Didn't really want to broadcast it, but on second thought maybe it would be good to mention. Voter ID is on hold for now, but another provision in the bill continues: signing of poll books. We have many rules related to signing the books. Electors each sign one of the two books with their correct name and, though upside down, inspectors glance at signatures to verify they aren't fake names or little personal statements. Well, we had one person state he was a certain public official and was allowed to sign the book and vote. He was pointed out to me and I even commented it didn't look like him. Was voter confused as to who's name and address he was to state? We discovered our error when the real person showed up to vote. Fortunately, we were able to read the first signature and cross referenced it back to where it belonged. It's an embarrasing situation I wasn't eager to admit - even the mayor heard about it. My whole reason for writing about it now is voter I.D.

How many people mistakenly and unintentionally vote as someone else in Wisconsin. I know it happened before signing the book was a requirement. I know it even happens with signing the book. It probably would even happen with voter I.D., but I have to wonder if it would have happened Tuesday if we'd seen this gentleman's official I.D. and not just taken his word for who he was. Without talk of disenfranchisement, this is solid evidence that voter I.D. would help ensure a more reliable election.  

On another matter . . . Back on St. Patty's Day I mentioned all the trash I found along Hwy. T / Madison St. leading out to Retzer. A related article in Saturday's Freeman agrees. Televisions were found dumped east of DT on Madison. Probably the same ones I saw. Apparently the town clerk doesn't read WaukeshaNOW: "... this is the first time she's heard of dumping on Highway DT..."  Well, east of DT anyway.

Lastly, cranes are again in the news after last I blogged about problems with the juvenile whooping migration and Rep. Kleefisch's sandhill hunt proposal. The proposal was shot down, but will again be up for discussion and vote at tomorrow's WI Conservation Congress spring hearings. Also, Operation Migration will be allowed to continue this fall with changes. For some reason the FAA doesn't like pilots flying ultralights from one end of the country to the other, even if leading whooping cranes. They'll have to make significant changes and won't be allowed to fly ultralights any more. Related: the Annual Midwest Crane Count is next Saturday morning. Really looking forward to it. Hoping for good weather.