Column for Nov. 26, 2009

I don't know if I can get in all I wanted to address this week, since I have a notepad full of topics, but let me see how far I can get. As I said a few weeks ago, I am an equal opportunity offender. I don't care who you are or from what side of an issue you come, if you are wrong, you are wrong. And I don't mind saying so.

I was aghast after reading in this and one other newspaper about the decision of Harris Jenkins to file a formal protest with the Johnston County Board of Elections after he lost the mayoral race here in Selma. Was it about voter fraud or candidate shenanigans? Nope. It was about the polling place for the west precinct being "inconvenient". Inconvenient? This is a joke, right?

Since I have lived in Selma (over seven years now. I have been a Johnstonian for a dozen years and a Tarheel for over two decades) there have been at least four voting locations that I can recall for the west precinct. I remember voting at the town library, Harrison Gym, a church six miles out of town (according to Mapquest.com), the police department annex building, and now Selma Elementary School.

There is no way possible that Selma Elementary School can possibly be considered to be "inconvenient". If hundreds of people can ensure that their children can one way or another, arrive safely at that school each and every school day I can hardly consider it to be inconvenient. If parents can show up there for school activities and Miss Railroad Days Pageants take place there, the venue can hardly be considered to be inconvenient. If voters had to drive six miles outside the town limits for a period of time in one of the stupidest decisions taken by the Board of Elections and have us vote at a distant, out of town church, then voting at Selma Elementary School can hardly be considered to be inconvenient.

According to one news report, the "West Selma polling place is about a mile from some historically poor neighborhoods on the south side of the railroad tracks." One mile? 5280 feet. You have got to be kidding me! Just one mile? People in Iraq walked miles and stood in line for hours, under the threat of death for voting in their elections. Yet many people still dipped their fingers in purple ink to show that they got to vote.

Less than 10% of the population of Selma even shows up to vote in this town. Jenkins was quoted as saying, "Look at where all the black people live, look at where all the multicultural diverse population lives, look at where primarily the poor live".

Well, Mr. Jenkins, you were campaigning in my neighborhood. You even spoke with my wife. Have you seen my neighborhood full of Blacks, Hispanics, and the poor? Yet they seem to have no problem getting to Selma Elementary school to sign up their children for free and reduced price lunch. 60% of the students there are Hispanic and that is not to mention the amount of black students. 90% of the students there get government lunch subsidy. Quite honestly, I am tired of helping pay for them. I pay for my child's lunch plus help but theirs, too. How is it that they can get to the school for that, yet it is too far to go to vote? It is a matter of being spoiled and apathetic, not inconvenienced.

In all fairness, it has been ridiculous that the polling place keeps changing for both precincts in town. Furthermore, I don't see why we even have more than one voting location, since Selma is a small town. Even in a small town, I would still like to see three precincts and us elect two council members from each. That would be more effective for local representation purposes and give greater diversity to the town council. But that is a rabbit trail and I am not going to get to other topics today, obviously.

The bottom line is that if people are not willing to make arrangements to travel just one mile to vote in an election, they do not deserve to vote. One mile is not excessive, inconvenient, and certainly not worthy of whining.