jwwright Report post Posted November 5, 2008 Tony,,,,,,,,,,no doubt that you do, although the population can not compare. It is my understanding that you are required by law to vote , correct? JW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tashabear Report post Posted November 5, 2008 And I still don't understand what part Chads play in the process. The only Chads I've encountered were little cartoon drawings that appeared on walls in Britain after WW2.So much to learn, and so little time! That's Kilroy, I thought... Remember computer punch cards? Chads are the punched-out bits. "Pulling the lever" on the voting machine, where that type is used, punches the card. When the chads don't detach properly from the card, these "hanging chads" prevent the tally machine from reading the card properly. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
celticleather Report post Posted November 5, 2008 The fog's beginning to clear! I guess population density must play a large part in this. I heard on the news tonight that in some states, the number of people wanting to vote exceeded the number of polling slips available . . . whoops! That's Kilroy, I thought... The Kilroy/Chad debate seems to depend upon which side of the pond you live! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jwwright Report post Posted November 5, 2008 It's all good............polling places are closed for the eastern and central time zones,and by all accounts things went well. A few reports of running out of ballots, etc., but those thing are to be expected with such a high turn out. JW Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tonyc1 Report post Posted November 5, 2008 Tony,,,,,,,,,,no doubt that you do, although the population can not compare. It is my understanding that you are required by law to vote , correct? JW Yes JW, voting is compulsory out here for anyone over 18. Tony. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CitizenKate Report post Posted November 5, 2008 I'm still a bit baffled by the fact that some people in the US have to wait for hours to cast their votes. One probable factor is that the voter turnout this year is significantly higher than in past elections. The local registrars generally staff and equip the polling places based on historic turnouts. Some of them had the foresight to see a higher voter turnout coming in this election and bought more machines... there were two more in my assigned polling place. But in the more heavily populated places, I'm sure they must have been unable to make a big enough adjustment. I live in a moderate-sized town (around 50k), I went during the morning rush, and was in and out in 20 minutes. Kate Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CitizenKate Report post Posted November 5, 2008 And I still don't understand what part Chads play in the process. The only Chads I've encountered were little cartoon drawings that appeared on walls in Britain after WW2. That was rumored to be the moniker of a WWII shipyard inspector, who left that bit of graffiti as he went from panel to panel to count rivets completed. Here is the full story from snopes.com, including the British variants. Kate Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tonyc1 Report post Posted November 5, 2008 That's a good story. I can't remember when I first saw it but as kids in the early 50's we used to draw it on things. I guess it was graffiti before we even knew what graffiti was !!! Tony. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rdb Report post Posted November 5, 2008 I am tearing up right now. America has shown it's true color, and it is America. God Bless us All, and God Bless America. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MADMAX22 Report post Posted November 5, 2008 UGGGG I feel sick, Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jordan Report post Posted November 5, 2008 A historical day to be sure. Both speeches were exemplary. The president-elect has a hard row to hoe ahead of him and it was obvious they both have a deep commitment and sense of duty to the people of this country. Let the games begin, it is definitely going to be an interesting next 4 years. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
celticleather Report post Posted November 5, 2008 Congratulations to Barak Obama's supporters, and commiserations to the rest! The Kilroy/Chad story was great! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cem Report post Posted November 5, 2008 Western Australia has about 2 million people and we still get delays at times in the major areas thankfully though it has got better over the years with them opening up more polling places. Though I had fun a couple of months ago when we had our state elections my husband went through in about 5 mins, me on the other hand it took about 20mins seems my last name McDonald was hard to find on the electrol roll had to tell the guy who was marking the names off about 5 times how to spell it. In the end I told the guy it's like the chain of restaurants the penny dropped then ahh he said Miccy D's. Meanwhile the lady next to him and her line of voters were trying hard not to piss themselves laughing. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ferret Report post Posted November 5, 2008 With all the excitement of the U.S. elections I nearly forgot today is when we remember one of our national heroes, a chap called Guido Fawkes, the only man to enter parliament with honest intentions. Someone remembered as this pic of parliament square taken this morning shows. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Denise Report post Posted November 5, 2008 I've always heard the name as Guy Fawkes. Could one of you over-the-water chaps please give us the full story? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
barra Report post Posted November 5, 2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Fawkes Guy Fawkes tried to blow up the British Parliament. This occured on Nov 05, so this date has a certain amount of affinity for me as It is my birthday. As a kid in Australia Nov 05 was Guy Fawkes night or more commonly known as cracker night. This is where we kids would hoard all our pocket money and purchase a vast arsonal of fireworks. Traditionally this night was coupled with a bon fire where an effigy of Guy was burned. Having the bonfire in Australia depended on the weather at the time. Looking back there were countless way's feral 10 yr old boys could find to blow things up. Of course the PC tree huggers came along and no more cracker night. Who remembers penny bungers. They were like a small stick of dynamite. Barra Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ferret Report post Posted November 5, 2008 I've always heard the name as Guy Fawkes. Could one of you over-the-water chaps please give us the full story? 1605, England was being ruled by an oppresive Scot and there were lots of nasty laws against people with the wrong religion......err, hang on a minute, that sounds like today. Try this site Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
celticleather Report post Posted November 5, 2008 Always seems a bit strange to me that we celebrate his failure to blow up Parliament! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
UKRay Report post Posted November 5, 2008 (edited) Bonfire night is one of the most exciting nights of the year if you live in the town of Lewes in Southern England. I know this for a fact because it was one of the reasons I moved away from Lewes and settled 200 miles away. Let me explain: Every year about a month before the 5th of November the Lewes fireworks start. Bangers so loud you have never heard the like... There were a number of firework 'factories' in town where the local Bonfire Societies prepared elaborate centrepieces for their bonfire celebrations. These celebrations are massive affairs involving literally thousands of people. The roads are closed and the town is completely cut off from the outside world. The celebrations are policed by the Bonfire Societies own private 'police forces' called Bonfire Boys. The real police keep a sensible distance. One year a woman police officer was using a tannoy to get the crowds to move along the pavements. The crowd objected and started to chant: 'Burn the witch, burn the witch' and moved toward her in a very threatening manner. Very sensibly she put the tannoy away and got back into the armoured police wagon as two Bonfire Boys moved in and sorted out the muddle quietly and without fuss. Nobody argued with the Bonfire Boys' right to be there... The Bonfire Societies are a powerful force in the town and have a finger in all the town's business. they were set up so long ago that nobody really remembers but it is thought to have been in the sixteenth century. One of the traditions they have is to race with rolling, burning tar barrels through the middle of the town and down the high street to Cliffe Bridge where the barrels are dumped in the river. Fires are lit in the streets and the population is pretty well in a state of anarchy. Back to the fireworks for a moment. I lived on top of a hill and the monster firworks, fired from the town, would go up into the air until they were on a level with my house and then explode. Having spent time in Israel, Belfast and numerous trouble spots around the world as a journalist, I can tell you that for sheer noise and shock factor Bonfire Night in Lewes has them all beaten. Admittedly, deaths, buildings blown apart and shattering windows weren't a regular event but it happened occasionally along with burning debris falling from the sky and gangs of youths racing around throwning fireworks at anyone foolish enough to walk the streets. I ought to mention the anti-Catholic sentiment attached to Bonfire in Lewes. An effigy of the Pope is paraded through the streets each year and then ceremonially burned to comemorate the fate of the Protestant martyrs put to death at the stake by Mary Tudor's Catholics. Memories are long in Lewes. One society refuses to parade past the Catholic church and carries anti-Catholic banners that say No Popery. Hard to believe in the 21st century but England is a funny old place and not much changes under the surface... Okay, the event is definitely spectacular. the sky is alight with the most amazing displays you could ever imagine for hours at a time but, after many years the attraction definitely wears off. I have now moved to a town with a 10pm firework curfew - Bliss! www.bonfirenight.net/ www.lewesbonfirecouncil.org.uk www.whatsonwhen.com/sisp/index.htm?fx=event&event_id=83559 Find pictures here: www.needananswer.co.uk/lewes-fireworks-2005.html Edited November 5, 2008 by UKRay Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Crystal Report post Posted November 5, 2008 (edited) This celebration is very interesting. Here in the states it would never be allowed to go on this way. Anyone annoyed with the noise, explosives and crowds would hire an attorney and file a law suit. The insurance companies would probably have home owner's policy rates jacked up so high, no one would be able to afford to insure their homes from fire and collateral damages. The DEP (Department of Environmental Protection) would ban the tar filled barrels from being dumped into the river because of killing the fish. If a police officer was threatened, the entire mob would be tear-gassed and everyone would end up in jail... We just don't get to have any fun like this. I looked at the Lewes Bonfire Council site. I enjoyed the fact that people are warned to stay away for safety's sake. Common sense... we need more of that here instead of regulations. Crystal Edited November 5, 2008 by Crystal Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ferret Report post Posted November 5, 2008 Always seems a bit strange to me that we celebrate his failure to blow up Parliament! I celebrate his attempt, it's the thought that counts. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tonyc1 Report post Posted November 5, 2008 With all the excitement of the U.S. elections I nearly forgot today is when we remember one of our national heroes, a chap called Guido Fawkes, the only man to enter parliament with honest intentions. Someone remembered as this pic of parliament square taken this morning shows. Someone has a sense of humour! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
UKRay Report post Posted November 5, 2008 Here is a bonfire link for those in North America. http://www.lewesbonfirecouncil.org.uk/soci...cial/index.html Protest is a big thing with Bonfire Societies - they like to protest about almost everything - nobody is safe! You would get on well in Lewes, Ferret, they burn effigies of politicians every year too. In fact, they burn effigies of anyone who upsets them and that is just about everyone. I believe they actually publicly burned an effigy of the local Catholic priest one year because he complained about the anti-Catholic sentiment they spread around the town. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Washroad Report post Posted November 5, 2008 With all the excitement of the U.S. elections I nearly forgot today is when we remember one of our national heroes, a chap called Guido Fawkes, the only man to enter parliament with honest intentions. What an absofreakinloutely fabulous statement!!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hilly Report post Posted November 5, 2008 UGGGG I feel sick, Here, let me get sick alongside of you then. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
