My local polling place.


14917 Victory Blvd. Van Nuys, CA

This year, the voting was conducted at the Salvation Army, 14917 Victory Blvd. Van Nuys.

We awoke early, in the rain, and when we arrived at 6:45am there were already about 20 people ahead of us.

By 7:15 I was done voting.

I had brought my cheat sheet, a liberal guide to voting on the propositions and which obscure judges to vote for.

As usual, I had to marvel at the moronic method used to record my vote. I speak of that card that slides into a double red holder and the little, bitty inky pen which one must use to aim for the smallest of holes.  I cannot imagine anyone older than 65 having the eyesight or dexterity to use this crude system, but that’s what we do here in California.

I don’t know that I “beat the crowds” by voting early. When I returned in the mid-afternoon, to snap this image, there were very few voters inside.


What McCain called Senator Obama at their 2nd Debate.
What McCain called Senator Obama at their 2nd Debate.

Obama Fundraiser.


I attended an Obama fund raiser in Silver Lake this past weekend and shot these photos.

Sarah Wears Obama.


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Sarah Wears Obama., originally uploaded by Here in Van Nuys.

Emotions v. Logic.


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Dad in hospital., originally uploaded by Here in Van Nuys.

I still might vote for Obama, but…..

Yesterday, I had the privilege of watching (on C-SPAN) former President Clinton speak to a church audience as he outlined the specifics of why his wife would be the best choice for the Presidency.

It was vintage Clinton, as he bit his lip, but also artfully blended the rational and emotional as he weaved stories of how his father operated a grocery store in a Negro neighborhood in the 1940s. Many poor customers never paid, but Clinton’s father thought that any man who worked, deserved to be able to feed his family. He brought up his own mother’s record of hard work as a nurse, and how “I have been waiting my whole life to vote for a woman.”

Hilary Clinton has a record of working with actual accomplishments (children’s health insurance) that has tremendously affected the well-being of Americans. She also wants a health plan that is TOTAL in its entirety, covering everyone, so that the costs are lowered for ALL.

One of the arguments against Hilary is that she cannot be trusted because she voted to authorize Bush to use force against Iraq. Obama, by contrast, claims to have always been consistent in his opposition to the war.

But another one of Obama’s “selling points” is called “CHANGE” which he holds up as his emblem. Yet, if we are voting for the future, shouldn’t we place health care reform at the top of our agenda, since the Iraq War is largely in the PAST?

If we look ahead at Iraq, absolutely nobody running for President can possibly predict what course of action will be best for our nation in one, two, ten or twenty years.

But in terms of national, universal health care, it is absolutely a certainty that our country will be better off if everyone can be insured.

That’s why the logical case for Hilary is stronger than the emotional one for Obama.