Foreign election officials amazed by trust-based U.S. voting system

(Foreign Policy) For the head of Libya’s national election commission, the method by which Americans vote is startling in that it depends so much on trust and the good faith of election officials and voters alike.

“It’s an incredible system,” said Nuri K. Elabbar, who traveled to the United States along with election officials from more than 60 countries to observe today’s presidential elections as part of a program run by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). Your humble Cable guy visited polling places with some of the international officials this morning. Most of them agreed that in their countries, such an open voting system simply would not work.

“It’s very difficult to transfer this system as it is to any other country. This system is built according to trust and this trust needs a lot of procedures and a lot of education for other countries to adopt it,” Elabbar said.

The most often noted difference between American elections among the visitors was that in most U.S. states, voters need no identification. Voters can also vote by mail, sometimes online, and there’s often no way to know if one person has voted several times under different names, unlike in some Arab countries, where voters ink their fingers when casting their ballots.

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Ballots in question for 1,000 registered voters at Warren Wilson College

(Mountain Xpress) With only a few days remaining before Election Day, the Buncombe County Board of Elections has failed to determine the proper ballot for 1,000 registered voters residing on the campus of Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, including students, faculty and staff.

As part of the once-a-decade redistricting process, the sprawling campus was divided into two separate Statehouse and Buncombe County Board of Commissioners districts last year by the N.C. General Assembly. For many years prior, the registered voting address for students and faculty living on the school campus was the same – 701 Warren Wilson Road – which corresponds to the college’s mail facility. Voters living on the campus used that address in the May primary – the first election held after the lines were redrawn.

However, on Oct. 31, after more than a week of early voting had passed, school officials were informed that the mailing facility was no longer a valid address for voter registration for those living on campus. Instead, the Board of Elections said it must determine the address of each student’s dormitory in order to provide them with the correct ballot, according to an email sent to students Nov. 1 by Cathy Kramer, the school’s dean of service.

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Huge Alien Planet Rises from the Dead

(Mashable) An enormous alien planet that some astronomers thought was dead and buried has come back to life, a new study suggests.

A new analysis of observations from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope found that the bright nearby star Fomalhaut does indeed host a huge exoplanet, which scientists dubbed a “zombie” world in an aptly Halloween-themed video on the alien planet. This conclusion contradicts other recent studies, which determined that the so-called planet — known as Fomalhaut b — is actually just a giant dust cloud.

“Given what we know about the behavior of dust and the environment where the planet is located, we think that we’re seeing a planetary object that is completely embedded in dust rather than a free-floating dust cloud,” co-author John Debes, of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, said in a statement.

The saga of Fomalhaut b began in November 2008, when Hubble astronomers announced that a planet circled Fomalhaut, which lies 25 light-years away in the constellation Piscis Austrinus. Fomalhaut b was the first alien world ever directly imaged in visible light, they said.

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BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT NOMINATING COMMITTEE IS NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS

THE NOMINATIONS COMMITTEE OF THE INTERIM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT (BID) BOARD WELCOMES APPLICATIONS TO THE PERMANENT BID BOARD. THERE ARE A NUMBER OF AVAILABLE SEATS FOR PROPERTY OWNERS AND EMPLOYEES.
WE ENCOURAGE AND INVITE YOU TO SUBMIT YOUR NAME FOR THE BOARD.
THE RECOMMENDED BOARD WILL BE PRESENTED TO CITY COUNCIL FOR ITS APPROVAL AT ITS REGULAR MEETING ON DECEMBER 11.
THE IMMEDIATE WORK OF THE BOARD WILL BE TO RECOMMEND THE BID BY-LAWS, ASSESSMENT AND BUDGET FOR APPROVAL BY COUNCIL AT ITS JUNE MEETING, AS WELL AS TO DETERMINE BID SERVICES FOR THE BID. THIS WILL BE A WORKING BOARD SO MEMBERS SHOULD PLAN ON BI-MONTHLY MEETINGS AS WELL AS PARTICIPATION IN COMMITTEES AT LEAST UNTIL THE FULL BID PACKAGE IS APPROVED BY COUNCIL IN JUNE.
PLEASE NOTE THAT APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED AFTER 5 PM, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16, ARE NOT GUARANTEED A REVIEW BY THE NOMINATIONS COMMITTEE.
FOR AN APPLICATION OR IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT AVLBID2012@GMAIL.COM. BID INSTRUCTIONS & APPLICATION

For more information go to http://www.ashevillenc.gov/Departments/CityClerk/BoardsCommissions.aspx

Gott barred from voting, holding office in New Hanover

(Star News Online) Melissa Gott, once a leading contender to join the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners, was purged from county voting rolls after an elections tribunal on Tuesday ruled in effect that she did not own a permanent residence there.

The ruling, made after Gott chose not to contest a voter residency challenge brought by a local business owner, ends what is arguably the most controversial chapter in county politics in recent months. By invalidating her voter registration, Gott is effectively barred from seeking elected office in New Hanover County for the time-being.

“Ms. Gott has decided to save this board a long, drawn-out hearing which inevitably would require us to reveal private, personal information consistent with our position that Ms. Gott’s voting domicile is, and always has been, for most of the last decade, at 602 Chestnut Street in Wilmington,” said Gott’s attorney, John Ferrante, while reading a statement to the county Board of Elections. The board met Tuesday to hear arguments in the case.

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Debra Goldman blames estranged husband for media reports

(Raleigh News Observer) Wake County school board member Debra Goldman on Tuesday turned away detailed questions about recent controversies surrounding a 2010 burglary at her house, dismissing them as the work of her estranged husband.

Her school board colleagues appeared ready to move forward on other matters including student assignment. Neither board members nor speakers during a public comment period raised the matter. In her comments to media, Goldman blamed her husband for the controversy and turned an interview to the subject of her run for state auditor.

Her husband, Steven Goldman, has denied sending a much-discussed police report on the burglary to media outlets but has been in occasional contact with The News & Observer on matters involving the couple’s child custody and divorce issues.

“There is one person who has peppered the media for over a year,” Debra Goldman said.

Goldman called the release of the police report and other information about the break-in the work of one vengeful person. It was clear from the context and from previous statements by Goldman that she was referring to her husband. The two are in the process of getting a divorce.

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Mississippi governor campaigns in Marion for Romney. McCrory

(The McDowell News) Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant encouraged McDowell’s Republican leaders Saturday night to do all they can to support Mitt Romney for president and Pat McCrory for governor and help make North Carolina a red state again.

“I think Clint Eastwood had it right,” said Bryant. “Let’s go ahead and make his day.”

Bryant is a former lieutenant governor of Mississippi who took office as the 64th governor of the Magnolia State on Jan. 10. On Saturday, he toured North Carolina, speaking at local Republican headquarters in four different cities during the last days of the early-voting period. He took part in early-voting events at GOP offices in Asheboro, Lexington, Mooresville and, lastly, Marion.

At the local GOP headquarters, Bryant said he loves North Carolina and comes here once a year to visit his in-laws in Lake Lure. He added he can’t wait to have McCrory elected as the next North Carolina governor and become a fellow member of the Republican Governor’s Association.

Most of all, Bryant said he hoped the local GOP leaders would continue to work hard in their community on behalf of the Romney campaign. He stated that the former Massachusetts governor shares his beliefs in encouraging people and business owners to become successful through less taxes and regulation.

In his brief speech, Bryant talked about how he got to see President Ronald Reagan at the White House during an event for the Junior Chamber of Commerce. Bryant was active with the Jaycees in the 1980s.

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Atlantic City mayor on Gov. Christie’s rebuke: ‘Misinformed and ill-advised’

(Today News) Atlantic City mayor Lorenzo Langford escalated tensions with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie after the mayor said Tuesday he would welcome the chance “to confront the governor mano y mano” over how he handled the city’s evacuation during Hurricane Sandy.

A day earlier, Christie had criticized Langford as a “rogue mayor” for supposedly encouraging residents to ride out the storm in designated shelters rather than leave the area entirely.

He told TODAY’s Matt Lauer on Tuesday that Atlantic City residents received mixed messages from his executive order requiring everyone to evacuate and Langford’s encouragement to take cover instead.

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Editorial: Sandy vs. climate change politics

(USA Today) 7:44PM EDT October 30. 2012 – Put the perfect storm atop the nation’s most populous region, and the result is the human misery and havoc that Sandy wrought in the Northeast: Nearly 40 people dead so far, and more than 7 million without power. An estimated $20 billion in property damage. Record flooding in New York City that shut down the stock exchange and the subway. Devastation along the New Jersey coast. And, to boot, a blizzard along the spine of the Appalachian mountains.

All of this overshadowed the presidential campaign, one week before Election Day. But that’s not to say the superstorm doesn’t have a policy dimension. Even before Sandy churned ashore near Atlantic City on Monday, a debate was raging in scientific and government circles over whether the monster hurricane/nor’easter was a spawn of global warming.

Climate change activists pointed to Sandy as exactly the sort of extraordinary event forecast to occur as the atmosphere and the oceans grow hotter. Skeptics shot back that major hurricanes hit New York in 1821 and 1938, long before fossil-fuel emissions were a factor.

So, freak storm or climate change?

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Disney Buying Lucasfilm for $4 Billion; “Star Wars: Epsidoe 7″ in 2015

(New York Times) The Walt Disney Company, in a move that gives it a commanding position in the fantasy world of film, said Tuesday it had agreed to acquire Lucasfilm Ltd. from its founder, George Lucas, for $4.05 billion in stock and cash. The sale provides a corporate home for a private company that grew from Mr. Lucas’s hugely successful “Star Wars” series, and became an enduring force in creating effects-driven science fiction entertainment for large and small screens. Mr. Lucas, who is 68 years old, had already announced he would step down from day-to-day operation of the company.

USA TODAY is reporting “The latest part of the Star Wars saga, Star Wars Episode 7 is targeted for a 2015 release. “

Read the full story HERE>

NAACP criticizes Rev. Graham’s political stance as narrow-minded

(Charlotte Observer) For the second time during the presidential campaign, a group of African-American ministers in North Carolina has criticized Franklin Graham for challenging the spiritual beliefs of President Barack Obama, accusing the evangelist Monday of promoting a narrow form of Christianity that supports a politically conservative point of view. Meeting in Charlotte, the group read an open letter to Graham that comes in response to a series of full-page ads that bear a photograph of his father, Billy Graham, and ask voters to elect candidates who support “biblical principles.” In comments to the Observer last week, Graham said his 93-year-old father supported the message, which endorses candidates who support the nation of Israel, “the sanctity of life” and “the biblical definition of marriage.” Franklin Graham went on to say that Obama’s support for gay marriage and abortion rights challenges “God’s standard” and says “it’s OK for people to sin.”

Full story HERE>

Mental Hospital Voter Sign-Up Questioned

(Carolina Journal) Cherry Hospital, a state-run adult inpatient psychiatric facility in Goldsboro, welcomed a federally funded nonprofit organization to conduct a voter registration drive of mental patients, likely a violation of state law.  Moreover, a memo from a hospital administrator indicated the nonprofit, Disability Rights North Carolina, assisted patients in completing absentee ballots, which may have been illegal as well. North Carolina General Statute 163-226.3 makes it a Class I felony for anyone other than the legal guardian or close relative of a hospital or nursing home patient to apply for an absentee ballot or fill out that ballot on the patient’s behalf. The law was enacted in the 1980s to prevent the political exploitation of elderly and disabled residents of hospitals and nursing homes.

Full story HERE>

Could Hurricane Sandy Delay the Election?

(Slate Magazine) As Hurricane Sandy begins battering the East Coast, many people in the storm’s path are preparing for days of power outages. Meanwhile, pundits are asking how the storm could affect the outcome of the presidential election. If there are still widespread power outages on the East Coast come Nov. 6, could the election be postponed? State and local courts, too, have on rare occasion suspended elections. In 1985, a county court (at the request of the county’s election board) suspended a state election in Pennsylvania because of flooding and rescheduled the election for two weeks later. As for states without specific provisions of statutes, the governor could still reasonably use his or her emergency powers to suspend the election during a state of emergency. The exact person or people who get to decide whether an election is postponed or extended varies from state to state, too; in some cases, it’s the governor or the secretary of state, while in others the power belongs to the state board of elections.

Full story HERE>

ARCHIVE VIDEO: NC Gov Bev Purdue calls on support for suspending elections. (Sept 2011)

Sandy could push gas prices higher, slow economy for months, experts say

(Associated Press) Superstorm Sandy will end up causing about $20 billion in property damages and $10 billion to $30 billion more in lost business, according to IHS Global Insight, a forecasting firm. In the long run, the devastation the storm inflicted on New York City and other parts of the Northeast will barely nick the U.S. economy. That’s the view of economists who say higher gas prices and a slightly slower economy in coming weeks will likely be matched by reconstruction and repairs that will contribute to growth over time. The short-term blow to the economy, though, could subtract about 0.6 percentage point from U.S. economic growth in the October-December quarter, IHS says. Retailers, airlines and home construction firms will likely lose some business. The storm cut power to about 7 million homes, shut down 70 percent of East Coast oil refineries and inflicted worse-than-expected damage in the New York metro area. That area produces about 10 percent of U.S. economic output.

Full story HERE.

Second wild red wolf found slain in North Carolina

(Raleigh News Observer) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is offering $2,500 for information about a red wolf found dead in Beaufort County on Oct. 12, apparently of a gunshot wound – the second rare wolf killed in North Carolina in two months.

Friday’s announcement came less than a week before Wake County Superior Court is scheduled to hear a complaint against a rule that allows hunters to shoot coyotes at night. North Carolina is home to the world’s only wild population of red wolves, with only about 100 living in an area that spans five northeastern counties, and red wolf activists worry hunters will mistake those wolves for coyotes.

“This is not just an endangered species,” said Derb Carter, the Southern Environmental Law Center attorney who is representing wildlife and environmental groups in the case. “It’s a critically endangered species, and this is the only wild population in the world.”

The groups specifically hope to block the night hunting rule, which was enacted in August, in the five counties where red wolves live, Carter said. The state legislature approved night hunting as a way to control coyotes, which are non-native predators that prey on poultry, small livestock and pet dogs and cats.

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