It Is Halloween, After All

I'm working here. Not this very instant when I'm writing to you blowing off steam, but I was working. The phone rang. I saw it was The Democratic Party calling, and I figure they'll come calling soon enough once The One takes office, so I didn't bother to answer.

So the AG of my state comes on via robocall and leaves me a message thanking me for registering to vote and informing me:

Barack Obama is an inspiration to each of us and we want to take that inspiration and put it into action.

...so let's get out and vote for him in this historic election. Not a word about any of his positions. Just: he's an inspiration to us all.

I don't deny that people can inspire us. But, jiminy, that's creepy.

What's also creepy is my ballot, the sample of which arrived in the mail last week.

• Oo! Six choices for President.

• The GOP candidate for Congress in my district just makes me sad. He's pro-life, so I guess I'll vote for him. But my vote in this district will be a few grains of sand against high tide, so maybe I won't.
  

• Constitutional amendments. No to early voting. An election is meant to be a snapshot in time. On a date certain, what do you think? Early voting and late voting are all forms of cheating and corruption, leaving alone the fact that they make formal cheating and corruption more possible.
  
• There's a constitutional amendment promoting slot machines so that the wealthy in our state can tax the poor without appearing to do so. This measure is being promoted in a slick advertising campaign that does not mention the word "slots." The signs just read:

  strong schools, no new taxes, vote yes on Question 2.

  I assumed from that slogan it was some kind of anti-NEA measure. Whoops. No!
• There are always a zillion bond measures about which you know nothing at all until you see the ballot, and then you aren't sure what you're really funding. Tempted to vote no on everything just as a protest against fiscal irresponsibility and keeping the voters ignorant. Probably will cave and support at least the fire dept. No on H! No idea what G really means! Looks harmless, I'm suspicious.
  
• I'm also supposed to vote for a bunch o' judges about whom I know nothing. Nor is it possible with reasonable effort to find out anything about them. The county won't give you information. The election board won't (which is only right). The local parties don't endorse judges: I asked. How am I supposed to know if these people are releasing child molesters onto our streets or not?