-Caveat Lector-
LAW: The other side
The Florida Times Union
Jacksonville
Although the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals turned down the
request of George W. Bush to halt manual vote recounts in
Florida, the dissenting opinion in that case was more lucid and
compelling than the majority, in our view.
Among the four dissenters in the 8-4 ruling was Judge Gerald
Tjoflat of Jacksonville, who did not mince words in his written
opinion.
By changing the rules of the game after it was played, the
Florida Supreme Court debased the votes of thousands of Florida
voters and denied them the equal protection of the laws
guaranteed by the 14th Amendment, he said.
Rewriting of the law by the court meant that the practice of
punch card machine voting, used in Florida some 30 years, no
longer is the way election results are determined, he said.
Instead, the court's decision would relegate the machine count to
a mere screening mechanism. Not until all machine votes are hand
counted would the results be official.
In fact, the dissent said, "If the machines were merely screeners
on Nov. 7 ... then the election officials in each county should
have examined all undervoted ballots on the night of the
election. That they did not do so is evidence that either the
Florida Supreme Court changed the election law, or that county
election officials were shirking their duties."
But the punch card is an objective tabulating machine that admits
of no discretion to count votes. If a vote is properly cast
according to the instructions given to the voter, the machine
will count it.
One effect of the revision is that disaffected losers can
cherry-pick where they want to challenge the outcome, choosing
counties favorable to themselves. Other gaming of the system
also comes into play.
The majority's contention that Bush had shown no imminent harm to
himself as a result of hand recounting also was erroneous, the
dissent said.
The many challenges made possible by the Florida Supreme Court's
revision meant that Bush was placed in danger of losing the
election through selective and subjective recounting.
"Plaintiffs have established a case of serious constitutional
deprivation and the 'man on the street' is well aware of the
mischief the Florida Supreme Court's Harris decision has
wrought."
Tjoflat called plaintiffs' argument that the court retroactively
changed the state's vote-counting model "extremely persuasive."
"Because of past practice, interpretations of state officials
prior to Harris, and the legislative history, I believe that the
Florida Supreme Court superimposed a new model onto the state's
statutory election scheme," he said.
Based on what he called a clear precedent, Tjoflat said he would
hold that the Florida Supreme Court unconstitutionally changed
the election system after the election had taken place and that
alone was reason to reverse.
The majority brushed off the case too easily. By finding that
Bush had not been harmed because he had not yet lost the
election, they completely overlooked the harm done to the voters
who are treated differently than other voters by selective and
subjective recounts.
=================================================================
Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh, YHVH, TZEVAOT
FROM THE DESK OF:
*Michael Spitzer* <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Best Way To Destroy Enemies Is To Change Them To Friends
=================================================================
<A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A>
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
Archives Available at:
http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html
<A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of
[EMAIL PROTECTED]</A>
http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
<A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A>
========================================================================
To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email:
SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Om
