Flag on the Play

In response to a post I made on my Facebook page about the Brett Kavanaugh SCOTUS confirmation and subsequent inaccurate, misinformed or blatantly ignorant comments by multiple people, I had no choice but to respond.

The post was a meme (created by someone else) about the dangers of putting one’s party over the best interests of the country. The meme was commentary on the recent SCOTUS ruling that Native Americans in North Dakota must have a street address in order to be legally able to vote.

A couple of people accurately pointed out that the meme did not contain the correct numbers in the decision (Meme: 5-4 | Actual: 6-2) nor did the meme take into consideration that Judge Kavanaugh did not participate in this ruling.

Okay, my bad, but here's the point.

Yes, I should have fact checked the meme before I posted it. Had no one noticed the incorrect information before I did, I would have simply taken it down. Still, there is no excuse for posting inaccurate information. At the same time, I think it’s dishonest to simply take down an inaccurate post, once the incorrect information is pointed out, without taking responsibility.

I think it is important to own the mistake, address it and discuss it as necessary—with reasonable people of sound mind that is. It quickly descended into a barrage of uniformed, misinformed, baiting, condescending, and mocking comments. I let those commenting and arguing with one another post at will for a while, before shut down the melee with this:

Generally speaking, I don't respond to baiting but there is enough inaccurate information here for me to do so. Be advised that baiting me into a response after this is not going to earn you anything additional. My points:

1. Please note that yes, in this meme I shared what a couple of you noted are specific inaccuracies. See the UPDATE at the top? That belies an update to this post. That update addresses your concerns. I'll not address them further.
2. With or without the update, the point I'm making is that each SCOTUS judge who voted in favor of this (no matter the party) was wrong.
3. If you've seen my earlier posts you know that I think that sexual assault allegations aside, Kavanaugh was the exact wrong pick for SCOTUS. Liars, those displaying a demeanor unbecoming a federal judge, clear and obvious partisanship, threatening the opposition and most importantly, saying the president is above the law, are all characteristics that are disqualifying.
4. There is a litany of cases in this election cycle where the GOP is overtly attempting to suppress the vote, particularly for minorities. See Georgia, Prairie View, TX and North Dakota, as examples. Some of these are being thwarted but are not out of the woods yet.
5. No. Getting an ID is not simple for people who do not have access to a DMV within walking distance, for those who are elderly enough to not necessarily have a birth certificate, for the poor, etc.
6. And voting is being made even more difficult by closing voting locations, eliminating early voting, sharing incorrect voter registration information or changing requirements within mere weeks of the deadline (yes that happened).
7. Before you start pontificating about what Native Americans can or should do, how about ask them (rather than making assumptions) what their particular difficulties are? They are indigenous and, at the very least, change should not be approved (and especially such a dramatic one) this close to an election. Why North Dakota? Because the GOP recognizes it's a very tight race and Native Americans pushed Heidi Heidcamp over the finish line the last time.

Regardless of where we land on what should be required to vote, voting should be easier, not harder. If we are going to put through tougher restrictions, we need to do what is necessary to make it as simple as possible for all citizens to vote. Yes, I said citizens. I'm not going to argue with you about who gets to be a citizen and who doesn't. If you want to suppress votes, you are the problem, not the solution.