When we wander off to holy war, we have to take the time to make certain that we know exactly who we are fighting and why. That requires us to use our ability to reason. The amount of effort required for us to think, unfortunately, is considerable and painful. Why?
- In humility we have to admit our limitations. “I” am not wonderful, important, or always right.
- Facts either dispute what “I” want to believe, or facts don’t mean what “I” think they mean.
- “My” assumptions need to be tested.
- “I” don’t always know enough to reason out the truth.
Since thinking does not always work out the way we want, most of us don’t like thinking very much. It is much more fun to get emotional and just blame someone.
So, what about MIKE LINDELL’S “ABSOLUTE TRUTH” FILM? Did Lindell just get emotional and blame someone for fixing the 2020 election? No. I think Lindell made a sincere effort to get at the truth, but like most of us he had a difficult time getting a handle on a very complicated problem. So, I recommend watching the film. This post won’t make much sense if you don’t watch the film.
What is the most glaring omission? Consider the amount of time the film spends on Antrim County, Michigan. Amazingly, the voting machines flipped votes from Trump to Biden, and there is really no doubt that this happened. Is this not a gotcha moment? No. Think about how the problem was detected. A hand recount did not match the machine count.
The basic problem with stealing an election is that paper ballot. It is not enough to rig the machines so that they flip the votes. That can be too easily detected in a recount. Once enough we see enough counties with recounts that don’t match up with the original count, we begin to suspect the results overall. A seriously flawed count in one county, unfortunately, has not proven sufficient to cause such a universal suspicion.
That raises a question about Lindell’s proof of absolute truth, that the Chinese and others hacked into our voting machines. What were they doing? And who is Mary Fanning? Lengthy tables and fancy graphics don’t prove much.
- We have to have supporting testimony from the people who collected Fanning’s data.
- We have to know what the hackers accomplished and how. When this data was collected, can we show that the voting machines in question were even on the Internet? What does the IP address of the target machine actually match?
One big problem is that by itself, adding or changing votes over the Internet does nothing to the paper ballot. So, it is possible to do a recount and detect the hacking. Hence, what election officials discovered in Antrim County is something of a distraction.
If the Chinese and others hacked into our election, what would they have done? The only practical reason for doing such a thing is to create matching records for paper ballots that were added to the system without any associated voter registration data.
Consider the problem of just adding piles of paper ballots to the system (see No, The Presidential Election Was Not Rigged by Hacked Voting Machines | Cato Institute). We end up with more ballots than people who submitted ballots. To “correct” that discrepancy, the hackers have to access the database that contains the evidence that a registered voter actually voted, not the record of the votes. That is why President Trump’s lawyers did not go with this theory.
Did the Chinese and others hack into our voting systems? Based upon Lindell’s film, I don’t know, but I think it would be far easier to submit hundreds of thousands of fraudulent mail-in ballots than it would be to hack into voting machines that might or might not be online. If we are not even going to verify the signatures of voters submitting absentee ballots, all that is required is a voter registration database with lots of people who don’t belong in it.
What do we know?
- We have Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit against Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin in the United States Supreme Court, AG Paxton Sues Battleground States for Unconstitutional Changes to 2020 Election Laws | Office of the Attorney General (texasattorneygeneral.gov). That shows a clear pattern of constitutional violations.
- We have Liberal Democrats proudly proclaiming how they “saved” our nation from President Donald Trump, The Secret Bipartisan Campaign That Saved the 2020 Election | Time (see also A LASER-LIKE FOCUS – Citizen Tom).
- At least some voting machines are online: ‘Online and vulnerable’: Experts find nearly three dozen U.S. voting systems connected to internet (nbcnews.com), Internet Connectivity in Voting Machines — National Election Defense Coalition, and Stop hacking by taking voting machines off internet | Commentary – Orlando Sentinel. This is asking for mischief, and it shows the people running our elections have not been very scrupulous about maintaining election integrity.
- Is China interfering in American’s politics? Even Liberal Democrat publications admit a problem: Is China interfering in American politics? (brookings.edu), Exclusive: 600 U.S. Groups Linked to Chinese Communist Party Influence Effort with Ambition Beyond Election (newsweek.com), China’s Influence Operations in the United States – Georgetown Security Studies Review, and China Is Buying Global Influence for Cheap – The Atlantic.
- China doesn’t have to hack our voting systems to exercise huge political influence. For example, our president has suspicious connections with China: Bribery conviction of Chinese exec linked to Hunter Biden upheld (nypost.com), Steve Hilton: Joe Biden Took ‘Billions of Dollars in Bribes’ from China (breitbart.com), A Collusion Tale: Joe Biden, Hunter Biden & China | National Review.
- We have years of Liberal Democrats doing everything they could (including stuff that was clearly illegal) to undermine the administration of President Donald Trump. Why no link references? If you don’t know about this by now, what am I supposed to do?
So, what do I think? I think it is probable that Liberal Democrats stole the election, and I think Liberal Democrats fear being caught. That is why we have intimidating garbage like this tweet from Michigan’s Attorney General.
Challenging the results of an election is routine. Even Democrats do it, Marc Elias and the Democrats’ Latest Anti-Voting-Machines Theory | National Review.
Following the 2020 election, Liberal Democrats and their allies launched a vicious campaign to stifle debate over the integrity of the election. Compare their own questioning of the 2016 election. Their hypocrisy is just absurd. Heads I win; tails you lose?
Should it be an article of faith that Conservatives always win? No, but it is not appropriate to believe Liberal Democrats will always win either. That is why we are supposed to have a constitutional republic, so we can each go about our lives without worrying about a sword of Damocles (see What was the sword of Damocles? – HISTORY) hanging over us. When we behave like tyrants towards each other, we live in fear. That is why we need to protect each other’s God-given rights. When we depend upon government to give us our rights, we cannot afford to lose an election. Then we cheat, or we can be rightly suspected of cheating.
didnt they say the foreign hacker flipped votes? then your paper ballot point is not relevant
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@paul mewis
We keep the paper ballots so we can do a recount. A foreign hacker cannot change a paper ballot.
If a foreign hacker is to succeed, then he has to prevent a recount. If a candidate is willing to pay the cost for a recount, in most places he can get one. After that, as Trump found out, an investigation requires the cooperation of state or court officials.
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Reblogged this on boudica.us.
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Thanks!
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Excellent post Tom.
I divide Mike Lindell’s video in two parts.
“Old scool election fraud” and “High Tech election fraud”.
While the first part is excellent the second part is not entirely convincing.
Both parts deserve further examination, especially by the judicial system.
In a free society one should be able to challenge any claim.
Anyway, falsehoods are not destroyed by banning them but they are destroyed by exposing them.
That’s why I welcome Mike Lindell’s video.
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@artaxes
Thanks. I very much appreciate the compliment.
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Now we know why France outlawed mail-in voting 45 years ago. Apparently, the left is afraid because they know they can’t win without rigging the election (welcome to Venezuela!). As you pointed out, just the constitutional violations in the state’s voting laws alone would’ve swung the election in those states. And I agree, China’s influence is more indirect. They don’t need to manipulate the voting machines when they can manipulate the powers that be.
And straight out of Orwell’s 1984, the MSM and Big Tech oligarchs, along with their loyal “fact-checker” (“Ministry of Truth”) are erasing people like Lindell, while putting the 2020 election down the memory hole. Anyone who brings it up again, in direct violation of the Newspeak narrative are punished by the Thought Police and made an “unperson.”
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@Mel Wild
If we do not get out children out of the schools run by Liberal Democrats, they will be difficult to stop.
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@ Tom.
Agreed. As I’ve said before, I wouldn’t let my kids within a 100 yards of a state-run school. Except it’s not the Liberals as much as the Leftist ideology that’s most dangerous now. For instance, with the infiltration into state-run schools by the former newspaper, NYT’s “1619 Project,” and other awful Neo-Marxist offshoots like Critical Race Theory, Identity politics, etc. These ideologies will destroy our country.
Btw, here’s an interesting video showing how the MSM and public schools collude to make us malleable non-thinkers, which lends to herd mentality….easy to be manipulated. Unfortunately, this has been going on for decades.
“Why Public Schools and Mainstream Media Dumb Us Down”
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@Mel Wild
Will have to check out the video. Thanks.
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@ Tom.
The Epoch Times released an interesting Op-ed about Time Magazine’s recent article, “The Secret History of the Shadow Campaign That Saved the 2020 Election.” While their intent was to show the “heroic” effort of the left to save America from a Trump reelection, they admit there was “a loose coalition of Democratic operatives, grassroots activists, mainstream media, tech companies, and corporate CEOs” working together to sway the election in Biden’s favor. It also notes how Time admitted this well-funded cabal had control over every aspect of the election, including Antifa and BLM protests….
“There are several material admissions made in the article, not the least being that the left actually did control the activities of groups such as Antifa, Black Lives Matter, and others that rioted throughout the election year. As the article notes, “Many of those organizers were part of [Mike] Podhorzer’s network” the man credited in Time’s article as being “The Architect” of the entire election effort.”
Here’s the link to the article (includes link to Time Magazine article):
“Opinion: Time Magazine Details the ‘Shadow Campaign’ Against Trump”
https://www.theepochtimes.com/time-magazine-article-points-to-a-controlled-election_3688393.html?utm_source=pushengage
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“Challenging the results of an election is routine. Even Democrats do it, Marc Elias and the Democrats’ Latest Anti-Voting-Machines Theory | National Review.”
How many lawsuits were filed by Democrats to stop recounts in Georgia and elsewhere? I do remember that one part of the Florida fiasco were broken voting machines in poor constituencies (oh, those vote mostly Democratic, we are sooooooo sorry) and another the Republicans refusing and hindering a hand recount at every turn and corner until the clock ran out.
“Following the 2020 election, Liberal Democrats and their allies launched a vicious campaign to stifle debate over the integrity of the election. Compare their own questioning of the 2016 election. Their hypocrisy is just absurd. Heads I win; tails you lose?”
While there was griping about Russian influence during the campaign, howerver the election result itself was not contested in court and Obama immediately began with the transition period, doing his best to bring Trump and his team to speed.
Compare and contrast with 2020.
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@marmoewp
I think I did compare and contrast 2016 and the following four years, four long years, with 2020.
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I did not watch the video, nor do I ever intend to. Let me explain why no one should spend their attention on such nonsense.
Yesterday, I read a fascinating column in the NYT about “attention”. It was based upon the years past Cassandra like predictions of one Michael Goldhaber. Goldhaber pretty much predicted how the rise of the internet age and endless 24 hour tv channels would create an “attention economy”. Bare with me for a moment and give me your attention to see why this should be important to everyone.
Apparently, because we can only “pay attention” to one thing at a time, we do that paying at a zero sum rate – paying attention to one thing means that another thing is neglected. Therefore an opportunity cost exists in this economy in that everything we spend our attention on costs us in the things we neglect paying attention to.
By comparison, with the new media, the amount that a person can now “receive attention” is virtually unlimited. In an attention economy, “attention received” is power accumulated. Therefore endless attention seekers compete for our focus so as to accumulate that power.
The result follows that those things most adept at screaming for our attention (24 hour news, endless entertainment options, fear based conspiracy theories, BLM, Donald J. Trump, etc.) get that valuable resource while other things, perhaps actually more valuable to us, we neglect. This economy of wasted attention and attention deprivation explains many issues right now from the BLM protests to recent capitol insurrection – so many people wanting, screaming, even fighting desperately for attention and feeling they don’t have it, that it is only going to elites and the privileged. Note the streaming live video that the folks actually committing crimes put out while they were doing it.
As my wife and I grow older, this concept of an attention economy struck me rather profoundly. Do I pay attention to my family, my spouse, while they can still appreciate that love light shining on them? Am I wasting this limited resource on frivolous things? Probably so.
Goldhaber’s favorite maxim comes from writer Howard Rheinhold: “Attention is a limited resource, so pay attention to where you pay attention.”
Think about what that means. What actually effects and affects your life? What is important to you? Do you “spend” your attention on experts who have some depth of knowledge or insight in that area, or do you waste it on charlatans and snake oil salesmen?
As I give more thought to where I direct my limited attention, you probably won’t see me here very often anymore. I am unlikely to change the minds of people who waste their attention on the conspiracy theories of a guy who sells pillows for a living rather than actually learning what the actual officials and experts in charge or running and regulating those activities say. It’s a waste of my attention, and I am obviously wasting yours.
Here is the article that I’ve been referring to if anyone is interested. I think it may be worth your attention.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2021/02/04/opinion/michael-goldhaber-internet.amp.html%3f0p19G=2103
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@tsalmon
Since he owns that pillow company, I assume Mike Lindell is fairly wealthy, at least he was before Liberal Democrats decided to shut him down. Still, investigating election fraud is not his expertise. Therefore, I am not surprised his film is not up to its billing, absolute truth. Just the same, your comment is hogwash.
Unless we agree with you, we are unworthy of you. Still, you, the self appointed expert on charlatans and snake oil salesmen, graciously provided us with a link you want folks to read. Yep! We should only partake of the truths approved by reporters and their unnamed sources at The New York Times.
When all you are doing is finding sillier ways to attack my character and the character of the people who disagree with you, what makes you think your comments are adding anything more positive than Mike Lindell’s video?
Fact is that people like you have done your level best to suppress an investigation into 2020 election fraud. That is totally at odds with our history.
When someone tells a lie, we don’t suppress the lie. Instead, we do our best to present the truth. Similarly, if alleged liars call our election systems untrustworthy, then we show people why they should trust them. Otherwise, we fix the problems.
Liberal Democrats own the government, our schools, and the mass media. Still, Liberal Democrats are afraid of a serious investigation? You and your frightened ilk have to shut people up. And you can’t see anything wrong with that?
The irony is that when you treat differences of opinion this way you don’t have to cancel anyone. Long before you decided to cancel anyone you stop paying any attention to them. Long before you cancel anyone you stop seeing them as separate human beings entitled to their own thoughts and opinions.
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Tom,
Odd that you found my comment and the NYT opinion to be a personal attack which required a personal attack in return. Do you really feel “cancelled” simply because I won’t be paying much “attention” to you here in this forum? That in itself provides an illuminating reaction.
Oh well. I’ll get over it. In fact, I already am. I hope that you will too. See you at the next family FaceTime. I rather enjoy those. Unlike this, that seems worth the attention it takes.
Love to you and yours brother. I won’t respond further so you can really enjoy letting me have it. 😊
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@ Tom, tsalmon.
“I did not watch the video, nor do I ever intend to. Let me explain why no one should spend their attention on such nonsense.”
LOL! Says the one who wants us to read something from the former newspaper, now a leftist propaganda rag, the NYT! The irony is astounding.
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Tom,
Anyone who ever experienced working in a company during a transition from paper to a computer trail knows how important standard procedures must be adhered to prevent false or fraudulent practices to develop.
For example, I remember how every manager made a personal copy of every correspondence he or she transmitted because they did fear being accused of not doing their job. The goal presented by the computer experts that the computer would reduce the number of copies in a copy machine never did materialize.
Our USA Congress does the same for every correspondence they write or send in printed form in the Library of Congress.
That is except for some reason, votes in an election.
Seems Congress is more concerned with Rights even if the Rights may be Wrong if there is no way to prove or put to rest to resolve what people suspect about the competence of Legislators and an election other than their words to assure us the 2020 election was “the safest election in history.”.
The video is only an attempt by a concerned individual that brings to light the need for minimum standards that are used in business to apply to government to prevent Rights for becoming Wrongs in my opinion.
Regards and goodwill blogging.
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@Scatterwisdom
Agreed!
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You are aware, that Georgia, Pennsylvania and Michigan use paper ballots, right?
https://ballotpedia.org/Voting_methods_and_equipment_by_state
My recommendation for any election: use handmarked paper ballos. Easy and intuitive to use, easy to verify for every voter. Ballot marking devices (BDM) are a good option for disabled voters, but research indicates that too few voters verify their ballot after getting it back from a BDM, so I would advise against general use. In addition, great care needs to be taken with the selection of BDMs — anyone remember butterfly ballots? Counting can be sped up by using optical scanners with random hand count checks for verification.
I strongly warn against the use of direct recording electronic systems, that simply leave no papertrail. Those really are a disaster waiting to happen, IMO.
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