A middle aged man of average build stealthily approached me, “Ma’am, if you don’t put that away, you’re gonna have to …” My thoroughly confused look must have thrown him. He shuddered a moment, then continued. “Ma’am, please put that away; you’re going to get us all in trouble,” he stated nervously in a hushed voice. You would think I had threatened someone, mooned ‘em, or pulled out a weapon of some sort.
This actually happened to me when I showed my ID at the voter check-in table. Upon entering the voting place, I pulled out my driver’s license and presented it to the lady at the registration table. “Oh, Ma’am, you are not required to show ID to vote,” she stated.
My response was, “oh? Well, I don’t mind showing mine anyway.”
“Ma’am, you are not required to show ID to vote,” she repeated.
Didn’t she say that already? “I understand. But I want to show it,” I said.
Again with the robotic response. Another volunteer stepped in, reached across the table to a pile of printed half sheets of paper obviously prepared for just such an occasion. He handed one to me saying it would explain the law on this issue. I looked it over while the registration lady asked for my last name again.
My mind was challenged. She wanted to know my name, but she didn’t really want to know my name because if she did, she would’ve looked at my legally obtained ID proving said name. Otherwise, I could really give her any name, could I not? I told her my name, which she asked me to spell. Again, I held up my ID.
“Ma’am, you are not required to show ID to vote,” her annoyed voice reiterated.
While looking at the paper that explained the law, I asked her if it was illegal for them to look at my ID. There is a difference between not required and not allowed. In fact, they may be seen as opposites. Not required infers that if I wanted to, I could; but no one could make me by holding some consequence over my head.
Ignoring my question, she then asked me for my address. Again, I have an ID, which contains my address – proper spelling and all. This is when all the workers became nervous and the gentleman, whose handwritten I’m a volunteer name tag read MARV, approached me with the please don’t get us in trouble entreaty. He went on to say I would need to speak to the Site Manager.
Stifling an incredulous giggle, I said, “the law says you are not REQUIRED to see an ID, it does not say you must refuse anyone offering to show it.”
Silent pause from all four workers that had convened around me to deal with my concerns. Then my registrar, Anita according to her neatly written tag, repeated the robo-statement once again. Another stifled giggle on my part. “Does anyone see anything ridiculous about this whole situation? A little common sense says I have the right to show my ID if I so choose. No one can take away my legal right as a US citizen to show my ID, which by the way required me to show specific forms of identification to US government officials in order for them to give it to me. Yet here at the voting booth, where we get to choose our US officials, nobody cares who you are or if you even have the right to vote. Really, does any of that make sense?”
Marv backed away a few steps and said, “I just don’t want any of us to get in trouble.” Poor Marv. I couldn’t bear to see his unreasonable fear and discomfort over this simple, non-issue.
I leaned over to the nervous man. “Mr. Marv, please get whoever I need to speak to, because the last thing I want is for you or this lady Anita, or any of the rest of you to get in trouble for me exercising my right as a US citizen.”
He got the woman in charge and she and I had a quick recap of what had happened. She assured me that their choice of words was not accurate and no one would be getting in trouble over this. She agreed that it seemed bizarre to require people to show ID for everything else in their daily lives, but not for something as important as choosing the leaders to entrust with our money, laws, and policies.
In the end, I did cast my vote; but what an experience. It only goes to show how ridiculously sheepish everyday Americans have become in this politically correct era infused with enough identity politics and social pressure to silence all semblance of common sense.
By the way, during the last presidential election cycle, my son accidentally voted on my husband’s voter card. They have the same name – Sr. and Jr. My son went in during the day and voted, so when my husband showed up after work, they told him he had already voted and couldn’t vote again! If that could happen inadvertently, how much more is it happening deliberately by cheating individuals? Who doesn’t believe there is a significant amount of nefarious activity going on in the voting booths? Activity that can be appreciably curbed with a simple requirement to show ID … the same way you do to drive a car, register for school, get a job, enter the hospital, have a drink, or enter many entertainment venues.
What possible reasons could there be to waive the requirement to show legal ID in order to exercise one’s right to vote? Nearly every legal American has a government issued ID. Seems to me it could only be used to hide illegal voting activity.
I bet the volunteer workers at the polling booths had to show ID to get the gig … such unrighteous irony.
#NotAraidToThink #VoterFraud #VoterIDMakesSense #ReUnifyOurCountry
EmmSix 