DU I need your help! Big time!

[Andy_Stephenson]

I am speaking in the morning to 500 democrats. I am replacing the Keynote speaker who cancelled at the last minute (Christine Gregoire) candidate for Governor. Well...I don't have a 30 minute speech justa 3 minute one at best. I have never written a speech before and I am a nervous wreck. The 3 minute one is so far so good. But I am jsut not sure what else to put in there. What are some thoughts that come to mind re BBV that I could touch upon??? What worries you the most about it? What would you like to see instead of the machines? Paper...hybird...computers only? The subject matter is a winning issue here with all of the local dems I have spoken too in the last few days. Not to mention I am vervous as a flea on a freshly dipped dog. HELP!

[soleft]

1. that the companies are run by clear GOP partisans

that's a big concern to me.

[BurtWorm]

3. You ought to go to GD with this one

You'll have a complete speech in half an hour.

[greatauntoftriplets]

7. And that they are big GOP campaign contributors.

Give statistics on how much companies like Diebold have donated -- compare and contrast how much they have donated to Democrats. Anecdotal evidence. Point out how much the GOP can gain politically from these machines. Also bring up the Texas redistricting melee, California recall and fibbies planting bugs in Philadelphia Mayor John Street's office. Not too tinfoil hat, but how the repukes are trying to hijack the country and the political process by any means they can.

Computer voting is okay if it eliminates hanging, dimpled, pregnant, etc., etc. chads, but we need a paper trail for verification purposes.

On edit: TrogL is correct. You have to hit main talking points. Also violence against women and children since that is part of the Washington Secretary of State's job.

[Andy_Stephenson]

14. I agree of course about the Pub Donors.

But pubs have been signing my petition.

[JanMichael]

2. I bet Guy has some notes that you could tap.

Hell I'd write you one now but I've REALLY got to get back to work...

[LuLu550]

4. take a deep breath

Check out some of the Dem presidential candidate's websites for issues, talking points and how to craft the message...I'm sure you will do fine! You will have limitless DU energy with you!
:yourock:

[On the Road]

5. Good Luck! You Have a Wealth of Material

[TrogL]

6. Forget BBV

Not that it isn't a worthy cause (I'm involved), it's just not the most important issue right now.

We need to unify the Democratic party and get it back on message. That's what the Repugs have worked long and hard for and it's working for them. The Democratic party needs to turn hard left and address:

• health care
  
• corporate welfare
  
• environment
  
• affordable housing
  
• jobs
  
• the economy
  
• this stupid war
  

[Andy_Stephenson]

9. As Secretary of State I have no control over those issues.

but do have control over the voting machines in the state.

[Droopy]

16. Good idea

Touch on other issues as well as BBV. These suggestions ought to give you enough material for the speech. Say a little bit about everything instead of worrying about coming up with a ton of material on one subject.

[WilliamPitt]

8. Speech ideas here

Look at the back of the room until you've warmed up. Then make eye contact with people.

Speak broadly at first:

Ladies and gentlemen, we stand today on the shoulders of giants. This democracy, this republic, was fashioned by the hands and minds of men and women who believed with all of their hearts in that development of what Lincoln called a more perfect union. A union that improves upon itself with every turn around the sun, a union that sees wrong and tries to right it, sees injustice and tries to thwart it, sees good and tries to carry it forward.

The document says We The People for a reason. It is We The People who are tasked to bring this grand experiment along, day by day and year by year. Of the people, by the people, for the people does not mean other people. It means you, and me, and everyone here, and everyone else. That is the magic of the dream. The involvement of the people makes this machine work. Period.

I stand before you today because I fear for the people's ability to tend to our business. The foundations of this republic rest on one simple, immutable, vital event: The moment you cast your ballot for the candidate of your choice. That small instant in time when you perform this service is the bedrock upon which our society stands. Without it, we are nothing.

Let me tell you a bit about the new frontier we are about to enter. Let me tell you about the new way you are expected to vote. Let me tell you why, to the very bottom of my soul, this new frontier horrifies and terrifies and infuriates me. Let me tell you why it must be stopped.

...

[geniph]

10. Will, that is truly great

Well done.

[Andy_Stephenson]

11. oooo goose bumps!

WOW. your damned good Will.

[WilliamPitt]

15. Remember that statement I was writing for you?

There are the first four paragraphs.

[Andy_Stephenson]

19. Yowza!

that rocks.

[VelmaD]

17. Oh I like that next to last paragraph.

"The foundations of this republic rest on one simple, immutable, vital event: The moment you cast your ballot for the candidate of your choice."

That's beautiful.

[foo_bar]

24. Lincoln wrote the Constitution?

was fashioned by the hands and minds of men and women who believed with all of their hearts in that development of what Lincoln called a more perfect union

If Lincoln invoked that passage he must've made little bunny ear "scare quote" gestures. I think it's generally attributed to Jefferson.

[WilliamPitt]

29. Ahhhh duuhhh pzzzzcheeeeezzzzz...

Me = nitwit. Writing too fast.

[SOteric]

12. It may help support your points

To prepare a flyer of URL's and a bibliography of books and references you've compiled on voting and the Black Box issues. To fill your speech out, you can read brief excerpts of some of the data.

Have a plan when you draft your speech. You want to start by telling your audience what's in it for them, not what's gone wrong and the entire history of the vote.

Tell them first that they'll be getting a voting system they can have faith in, one that will reflect the Democratic vote accurately. Then, just as their minds are asking "what...don't we have that now..?" You can explain to them why they don't, and detail for them some of the ideas you have for 'fixing' that.

[patdem]

13. Open source programing not propriatory....this is not a corporat

venue...this is about voting and democracy. here is a link to the open source argument:

http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/10/30/vote_counting_software/index_np.html

and then there is this other article:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031030/ap_on_el_pr/election_worries_3

[Andy_Stephenson]

18. Here is what I have so far.

I am going to use this on Sunday....But it needs far more for tomorrow.



I had my first voting experience at age seven. I remember going to the poll with my mom…going into the booth with her and the curtain closing. I was excited and when she was finished I asked to have my turn. She chuckled and said I would have to wait…I was adamant that I should vote…that the Democratic Party needed my vote. Well, needless to say I was disenfranchised. I waited and on my 18th birthday I had a voter registration card filled out and in the mail before the end of the day.

Since that time I have been registered and have voted in every single election. At times it was hard to make it to the polls, but I have always felt it was my duty to vote…Vote to make a difference and to ensure this experiment we call democracy survived and flourished. The right of every American to vote is what separates us from the totalitarian dictatorships that have come and gone since the founding of our country. It is a right that belongs to us all Democrat, Republican, Green, Gay, Straight, Black, White or naturalized Martian. It is the one right we have that can effect profound change on our society without the bloodshed of a revolution.

Today there are some that seek to cheapen that right. They see it merely as a commodity that can be bought and sold for a price or, stolen outright. But it is up to each and every one of us to protect that precious right…we must defend it vigorously from those that would take it. It is the basic freedom from which all of our rights stem. Without the right to a fair ballot we are reduced to mere slaves, without hope and recourse.

I am a simple man…a Subway “sandwich artist”, but I believe in my country. I believe we have the best system of Governance on Earth by of and for the people. But we have become complacent and even now our vote is being surreptitiously snatched from us and handed over to shadowy and secret process. The wrappings are benign enough who doesn’t like the friendly computer? We have grown accustomed to them they are pervasive…we trust them. Now don’t get me wrong I love my google and yahoo as much as anyone, and rely on them for many things. But the machines that are coming to count our vote scare me. Why, you may ask. When the machines are under lock and key…not open to scrutiny and review, how do we know our votes are being tallied correctly?

I am no expert…I am not a programmer and like many, do good to open e-mail and read it. I have to rely on experts. David Dill a computer science professor at Stanford University said "I've tried to find out what kind of testing that goes on in these companies it is something we don't know. They won't tell us a thing about their code or what they do to test it. “A bit about David, David Dill has worked tirelessly on bringing this issue to the front and center. He is worried and rightly so that the machines can be manipulated…heck lets call it what it is…the machines can be rigged.

I know rigged is a harsh word to use and many of you may recoil at its use. But let’s see what Diebold says. Diebold by the way is the maker of a voting system that by luck, we are able to see into. In internal memos that were leaked from the company we hear such thing as: “Being able to end-run the database has admittedly got people out of a bind. Though Jane (I think it was Jane) did some fancy footwork on the .mdb file in Gaston recently. I know our dealers do it. King County (WA) is famous for it. That’s why we’ve never put a password on the file before.” This statement worries me on many levels but most importantly why would someone be trying to do an end run around the vote totals? It strikes me as odd that they would even try.

Shortly before the 2002 election in Georgia, Rob Behler, a server technician and Product Deployment manager for Diebold, was instructed to install a patch on the Diebold machines. The file was called “Rob Georgia”. The patch had not been certified, tested or approved. Is Rob Georgia a noun or a verb? An interview with Rob Behler can be found in Black Box Voting, Vote tampering in the 21st century, written by Bev Harris. I would strongly urge each of you to read this book. The information in that book is quite chilling and expounds on this subject.

So where do we go from here? Australia has an exemplary voting system. The project was run by the government, with a contractor writing the actual open-source code for the system in less than six months for under $150,000. They have printers, audit trails, publicly inspected software and hardware, and the system is thoroughly tested. This is not impossible or too expensive. The value received from this system is, in my opinion…priceless.

[patdem]

21. WOW,,,,you wrote that in one day?? VERY impressive!!!

and I think you should TALK UP the open source and why that is preferable, maybe in every other sentence? JMHO!!!

Great work!!! :bounce:

Good Luck tomorrow!!

[Wwagsthedog]

20. Just a thought

Tell the audience to be sure that they are well represented on the local election commission/board and make sure some of them sign up to be election judges. Stress that they will have to be well versed in how the election process works no matter what media is used to tally the votes. Good luck!

[Andy_Stephenson]

22. Whew...I only have to speak 20 minutes.

here is what I got from the event coordinator.

"I was able to get you put on the agenda so it will look like a planned event. I would spend a couple of minutes talking about the reasons you want to be Secretary of State that have nothing to do with the voting problems. Find a couple and make them clear and important. Then you will have established some credibility and you can move on to the real focus of your campaign.

We have nothing much on the agenda since you are replacing Christine Gregoire and we thought she would pretty much take up the bulk of our Saturday morning meeting. You will be our focus and that is good for you and us. I would not plan on having to spend more than 20 minutes including Q&A. If there is interest, it could go longer."

[VelmaD]

23. so...

why do you want to be Secretary of State besides the voting problems?

Just curious. :-)

[Andy_Stephenson]

25. I hadn't really thought about it.

The SoS is responsible for trade in the state, and I feel strongly about outsourcing and its affect on the state. I am against it BTW.

SoS is also responsible for the Library system...oddly enuf.


Edit...Jobs...trade...more opportunities for all Washington citizens

[GOPisEvil]

26. For the future...consider the Patriot Act and how it relates to libraries.

You might, after further research, support state legislation that specifically prohibits libraries in WA from going along with the more nefarious parts of the act. www.ala.org is the American Library Association site. They have some good information on the Patriot Act and libraries.

[Andy_Stephenson]

27. Oh I know...the blanket Primary is an issue

the current SoS defended it...Both parties Dem and Repub don't want it.

[VelmaD]

28. You should find somewhere to think...

and spend some time figuring it out. Because people are gonna want to know why. You have to give people a reason TO vote for you and not the other person. The BBV issue is important and you should hit on it hard. But it isn't everything.

Hell, use us as a sounding board if you want. You can ramble and we'll listen. :-)

[DoYouEverWonder]

31. Only 20 minutes?

20 minutes is a long time when you are giving a speech and a long time to keep people's attention. Make sure you take some deep breaths before you start and don't talk too fast. It's easy to go through what you think is 20 minutes worth of material and ended up getting done in 10. It would be a good idea to do your speech at home and time yourself.

Try to find ways to engage the audience to keep them with you. Ask them rhetorical questions, for example: "When you cast your ballot do you still believe that your vote will be counted?"

People need to understand how this issue effects them personally and that the right to vote is the most important issue we face has a country. Without the right to vote we are no longer a free and democratic nation. Our forefathers faught and died for this right and it is our duty to preserve it.

Whatever you decide to say and do - good luck and I hope you have great success. We'll be rooting for you.

[latebloomer]

30. You are vervous?

Good, that is infinitely better than being nervous!

You have great ideas, fantastic helpers, and truth that needs to be told!

Give em hell!!

[Maine Mary]

32. Good Luck

I've been giving speeches for nearly a decade now and I STILL freak out at the thought of doing them. Writing the thing is no problem for me... it's the delivery that I can't stand. So if you aren't worried about that part, you've won half the battle. WillPitt and other great DU authors can help you with the wording. You'll be fine.

[Don_G]

33. If BBV Is The Subject

Then know that Sequoia posted a link to their BBV code online and it can be reverse engineered.

Link: http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,61014,00.html?tw=wn_polihead_3

[Andy_Stephenson]

34. Yes I know...

and we are getting Sequoia machines in Washington state.

[Tinoire]

35. Ask and Ye Shall Receive :)

Kick so other people can see this!

[Rabrrrrrr]

36. Give 'em a damn good three minutes, and be done with it!

They'll remember your speech, and it will be much more "impactful".

Sorry, worked for consulting firm, so impactful came out of my mouth.

Just cuz you have 20 minutes to speak doesn't mean you need to use it. Lots of great speeches have been very short.

So, don't offer any of those bogus "Oh, thank you for inviting me" and "so great to be here" and "Gosh, who'd have thought I'd be up here" stuff. Walk to the podium, have an opening sentence that sets the tone IMMEDIATELY of what you're saying, give 'em the few minutes of dense, incredible oratory, and then walk away and sit down.

Unless it's the kind of rah rah cheer thing, in which case, after you speak, stand there and do the rah rah stuff, etc.

on edit: just realized from a later post of yours that you are stumping for secretary of state. Maybe five minutes, then.

[BritishHuman]

37. Here's a point you might want to use...

Even if you agree with the current government and want to see them keep power, you have to be against this.

Why?

Because if government is not accountable to the people, they have no incentive to govern for the people. Their policies no longer have to even sound reasonable.