Why does Wash State have a higher % of smart folks than the red states

[TA]

Today I ventured out of the Blog world and visited some friends I haven't seen in a while. These are not politically involved folks like many of us here. I started talking about the elections and everyone of them are scared to death of Bush and afraid he's going to be reelected. They told me of other people they know, parents, friends, parents of their friends and they all have the same fear.

The young adults I talk to at places like Radio Shack and Starbucks tell me the same. I carry around voter registration forms and have handed out a few. But most are registered and can't wait to vote. The people out here are totally aware of the danger of Bush getting reelected. What gives with the red states?

[The empressof all]

1. We are unique in our little pocket of the world

I don't know any Bush supporters at all-even the Republicans I know aren't voting for him.

We are not the norm- It's easy to lose perspective of what's going on in the rest of the country

[TA]

2. We're all humans - capable of reading, thinking using our brains

We get the same news, have families we care about, love our country. There's got to be more to it.

[sandnsea]

8. WA is a swing state, supposedly

So how can it be a swing state when nobody likes Bush? And I know people in Walla2 and Spokane and they hate Bush too. I live in rural Oregon, I suppose we're not the norm either. Yet in 2000, my town was Bush/Cheney everywhere. It's not this year. I think the polls are bullshit and people hate Bush more than we really know, everywhere.

[RedEagle]

15. Washington a Swing State? Look to the Secretary of State

Sam Reed has given "provisional" certification to new software in six counties that will be used in the primary and November election.

This software is not federally certified or tested and does not meet the state requirements set out in law, to be used in Washington.

Plus, it seems since it will be removed in 2005, there are no plans to ever have it tested or certified.

Supposedly, a couple counties wanted to use the new, consolidted ballot format where you have to mark a preference. Never mind they could have just done what the bulk of the others are doing- using separate ballots for party preference. (In this primary, GOP, Dem, Lib, and one ballot for nonpartisan issues)

Reed declared an "emergency" to accomodate the last minute software changes.

Other reasons given are to save paper, which is bogus because it takes as much paper to print the equivalent of three or four separate ballots on one page as it does to do three or four smaller ballots;
lack of ability to accomodate marking a preference (which, logically, would only apply to consolidated ballots, but other states using the same voting systems have been doing this since at least 1999); or the increase in the PCO races on the ballot.

Of all of them, only the PCO issue may carry some merrit and only in King County- whose previous Diebold program was supposed to be able to handle the increase.

Keep in mind, that in 2000, the whole state handled a presidential preference primary, where preference had to be marked if the ballot was consolidated, King County used a consolidated ballot in that primary, and pulled it off. I understand it took a lot of work but most of that was really due to checking the ballots to make sure that if intent was clear but preference was marked, judges would rule on the ballot, get it marked, and make sure it was counted.

This time, if the preference isn't marked, the ballot will be chucked.

Safer, smarter, and easier to use the separate ballots.

King, Pierce, Snohomish, Kitsap, Chelan, and Klickitat all have the changes. That will easily encompass over half of the votes in Washington State. Only Klickitat will be doing any auditing, so there's at least one auditor who understands the issue. King, Chelan, and Klickitat use Diebold; Pierce and Kitsap ES&S, and Snohomish is Sequoia. I understand that software changes have been done to both the touch screens and optical scan in Snohomish. (Tell me why those fancy touch screens couldn't accomodate a consolidated ballot, since in essence, that's sort of what they are?)

Sam Reed just trashed all of the rules and laws in this state, all so a couple counties could use a consolidated ballot. And get this, he claims he can't stop them, but he's the head of elections in this state and he sure didn't have to accomodate the provisional certification.

In the primary election, those six counties should have to hand audit everything- then remove that software and put the old back in for the general election in November- that won't involve a consolidated ballot, which is the excuse for the inexcusable.

[Nite Owl]

3. It is true the blue

states actually have higher IQ's than the red states.

[ezee]

4. Our AIR is cleaner out here in Washington

[progressivebydesign]

7. It's easier to manipulate the non well-read people...

We're readers up here in the PNW.

[allalone]

5. why of course we do

you needed to ask?

[progressivebydesign]

6. Hi Mom!

What are you doing up so late??? Wait.. I mean, what am I doing up so late? :hi:

Yes.. we're damn smart here in the Evergreen State. The number of people holding library cards is phenomenal.

p.s. My Mom, "ALLALONE", only has 388 posts, but she's a fine DUer. She's a good example of low posts numbers are not to be feared. I vouch for her every chance I get, with my 5,000+ posts over the past (nearly) four years.

[Tom Kitten]

9. wow!

what were the results when you visited your friends in Spokane, Wenatchee, Yakima and Pasco? I assume they were the same... right?

[Madrone]

10. As someone that lives not so far from the places you mention -

I can tell you that it ain't so rosy ALL over WA - as is evidenced by the right-wing tripe printed out and tacked by the time clock the last couple of days. Seriously, I've rarely been so pissed off as I've been after seeing the anti Kerry bullshit posted at WORK. Totally out of line.

[allalone]

11. oh man

at your job? I didn't know they could do that. that must be a terrible atmosphere to work in. hang in there.

Hi, caliphoto, yes, what are you doing up so late?

[Tom Kitten]

12. I'm sorry to hear that

But I kinda expected it to be what it is...I live in Portland and travel to eastern Oregon to visit 2 of my best friends each year....they work for the BLM & USFS and if they had no access to the internet they would go crazy...they live in a nice place, houses and land are cheap, I'd consider moving there but a seven hour commute to work does not appeal to me...!

[eridani]

13. Two reasons

Lower than average church attendance, and higher than average library usage. Tacoma and Seattle generally rank highest in their respective city size categories for library checkouts. Also high bookstores per capita.

[Cats Against Frist]

14. Brain drain -- I think that smart people from red states

move to coastal areas, liberal areas. Seattle is obviously a liberal area. In the last few years, about 20 friends, family members and acquaintances of mine have moved to Seattle from the Midwest, including myself (though I am at Iowa in grad school, right now).

When you live in a red state, and you're seriously liberal, and you don't live in a liberal enclave, and you have the means to get out, usually people go to San Francisco, Portland (OR), Seattle, New York, Boston, etc.. A preponderance of enlightened, educated folk seems to attract even more.

And Seattle/Tacoma generally carry the state, but it's much closer, say, than the Chicago/East St. Louis pull on Illinois.

You never escape it, though. When I lived in Seattle, my neighbors had a fleet of monster trucks -- all bearing confederate flags...

[Generic Other]

16. Even people in TACOMA are scared of Bush!!!

And we don't scare easily.