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Mississippi's priorities misplaced
Published Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Welcome to Mississippi, where greater reverence is placed on the purchase of cigarettes, beer and ammunition than on the sanctity of the voting booth.
Granted, it’s not much of a state motto, but maybe that moniker changes soon.
With the swing of the gavel, the gears of the 2009 Mississippi Legislature grind into action today.
Hopefully, through all the bickering and childish behavior that seems to come along this time of year in Jackson, one piece of meaningful legislation will be passed: a voter ID law.
Currently, residents must show ID to prove their age in order to buy a pack of smokes, a six-pack of beer or a box of rifle cartridges, when their age is questioned. But you can just walk up to a voting booth, say a name, sign the book and be ushered into the voting booth.
Voters in Southwest Mississippi know well what can happen when the voting process becomes corrupted.
Among the most ugly examples of this was Wilkinson County 2007 Democratic primary race in which allegations of voter fraud, ballot mishandling, lawsuits and countersuits culminated with a new election, nearly a year after the first one was spoiled,
A law requiring voters to show identification prior to voting is badly needed in Mississippi. As evident in Wilkinson County, the system is easily corruptible. Such a law will not stop all voter fraud, but it might help curb some monkey business.
If we don’t start tightening up our loose, good ole boy laws, we’ll all end up questioning the integrity of our election system even more than the law-abiding voters in Wilkinson County do.
Comments
Posted by ratherbefishin (anonymous) on January 6, 2009 at 7:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This should be THE issue this term. Every year this comes up, and every year a bill comes out of committee and is voted down by the Democrat controlled legislature. Every year I contact my representatives, and every year some say they did their job by voting on it, and some say they won't support it because "it's unfair to minorities". It's time to FIGHT for Voter ID!!! Drive your representatives nuts with phone calls. The Democrat needs to keep this issue alive and in front of us. We have rampant voter fraud in this town, this county and this state. I've seen it first-hand..and I'm tired of it.
Posted by southernbelle (anonymous) on January 6, 2009 at 10:21 a.m. (Suggest removal)
How about being fair to the majority? That would be a twist.I aree with the phone calls and e-mails. It helps get our point acrosss. Get involved just like we do in these comments. It can't hurt.
Posted by time4change (anonymous) on January 6, 2009 at 11:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)
My 85 year old mother was told that if she didn't produce a picture ID that she would lose her Medicaid benefits. She doesn't have a birth certificate or a drivers license and the Mississippi Dept of Highway Patrol wouldn't give her a picture state identification card, but she easily registered to vote with her social security number.
Posted by time4change (anonymous) on January 6, 2009 at 11:35 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I too think that voters should have to prove their identity. But, I also think that elderly folks born at home should have an easier way to get a birth certificate and a picture identification. Why couldn't she use her social security number and marriage license as proofs of identification to get a state picture identification card?
Posted by Yeahuhuh (anonymous) on January 14, 2009 at 8:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
time4change -- those are great reasons people should NOT be required to produce ID to vote.
NOTHING should keep qualified people from registering to vote and their fraud should be proven before they are thrown off the rolls.
As for state/federal programs for assistance with bills, that is another matter, but there is certainly a solution for your mother.
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