Bob the Spook versus Joe the Plumber

Bob the Spook is a lot like Joe the Plumber -- he really exists. I've never talked with Joe the Plumber, but I've seen his picture. I have talked with Bob the Spook. I'm not going to identify him as more than just "Bob", though. You'll understand why as you read his account.

Bob, who wrote the following, is a former intelligence officer. Military. He's been on the listening end of wiretaps and the like. He spent some time in the Middle East and now has just retired from a job with a high security rating (nuclear facility in the West). He and I sometimes talk politics because he's a conservative and I'm not. We've also discussed registering to vote, "voter fraud" (a major canard*), and the like.

Here's a message from the second full week of October 2008:

Start Bob the Spook's message

When I turned 21, the voting age at the time, I was away at college. Next trip home, I went to the fire station to register to vote. The fireman pulled a sign from a stack; it was a notice to remove weeds from the property or have it done by the city at the owner's expense. I had to read a few sentences to prove I was literate in the English language. I think still that's a reasonable requirement for voting and citizenship (reading and writing English, I mean, not keeping your yard clear of weeds).

By the time the next election came around, I was off with Uncle Sam's Air Force defending democracy from godless Communism (and, as we found out several years after I retired, successfully). I voted absentee from various nice and not-so-nice places.

After retiring and moving here, I registered to vote. I think the wife and I were in Seattle fooling around on a long weekend. Some scruffily dressed kids were manning a card table and asking people to register to vote. So we did. I don't think we had to declare a party, Washington State had open primaries.

Eventually, we went to vote-by-mail. It's just like absentee voting, but you don't have to be away on election day to do it. One sign-up and I get ballots 3 weeks or so before every election. It was a really nice way to vote when I was working; the lines were really long by the time I could get to the polling place.

I think I've mentioned that I've voted in every presidential election since the LBJ-Goldwater contest. I found myself voting against the guy I liked the least every time except once. Only one guy came up in all those years who had experience that I thought qualified him, that was GHW Bush. And he did a pretty good job. Not perfect, but pretty good. This go-round, the only candidate in the primaries with a resume that impressed me was Richardson; some of his speeches later in the primary season gave me pause. Not sure if he believed all of what he was saying or if he was just trying to establish an identity separate from the other candidates.

This time, looks like I'll be voting for someone whose qualifications are a bit lacking, but I'm willing to settle for integrity and intelligence.

Bob

End Bob the Spook's message

Bob is voting for Obama. So is the very conservative Christopher Buckley, a (now former) columnist for the National Review and son of William F. Buckley. You can read his article here: http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2008-10-10/the-conservative-case-for-obama or http://tinyurl.com/Buckley4Obama

Oh -- and I spotted a car with a Gulf War Vet license plate at the Worthington Community Center on Tuesday. I see the car most days when I go to exercise after work, but this time there was something new on it: An Obama bumper sticker.

*Why "voter fraud" is a major canard:

Lemmie 'splain this in plain English. Let's just assume that ACORN has perpetrated "massive voter fraud", which it hasn't. But let's just assume that just for fun and to get past the "YES, THEY DID!" "NO, THEY DIDN'T!" phase of the conversation. Let's say Mickey Mouse has been registered to vote. When Mickey Mouse shows up to vote, Mickey Mouse will have to produce a photo ID that proves he is Mickey Mouse. Without that, he won't vote. Voter fraud? Hardly.

Let's say William F. Blinn has fraudulently registered 25 times from 25 addresses. When William F. Blinn shows up to vote at 25 precincts (this will be difficult because William F. Blinn will be the lead presiding judge at 3 precincts in Upper Arlington, none of which he is registered to vote at) he will need photo identification that proves he lives at each of the phony address he registered at. Without it, he doesn't cast a vote. To get a driver's license, William F. Blinn would need a Social Security number. Since he has only one of those, William F. Blinn will be able to obtain only one Ohio driver's license (out of state licenses are not accepted at polling places.) Voter fraud? Hardly.

Simply put: Registering is not the same as voting.