Contact the author: popcultureslut@hotmail.com

In the opening sequence of Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11", Al Gore is seen celebrating his Presidential Election victory in Florida before the Fox News Channel pulled the rug out from under him, calling the election for George W. Bush, alleging that he won 49% of the votes in Florida to Gore's 48%. Moments later, the film shows how Black voters and others who were unlikely to vote Republican were scratched off the voter list, and Black and minority members of Congress objecting to the election result claiming foul play and gross misconduct, but had no signed support from even a single Senator.

Was Florida fixed? Is Britney Spears hot? Of course it was fixed. But instead of the mainstream media investigating how the Republicans stole the election, they focused on voter confusion and how the whole thing was a big "mistake". And you know what? It's going to happen again - on November 2nd, 2004.

Already in the so-called "swing" States of Florida and Ohio, the electoral system is showing signs of confusion. In Ohio, a federal judge is challenging citizens right to vote (newly elegible voters can be unregistered due to undelivered mail or a change of address) and a civil rights activist is challenging the State with a lawsuit.

In Colorado, another battleground State in which neither Democrats or Republicans dominate, voters will also vote on Amendment 36. Rather than a winner-take-all scenario, 36 divides a States electoral votes based on the percentage of votes won by each candidate. It would more closely reflect the will of voters, and reduce the possibility of a candidate winning the popular vote but losing the election. If Amendment 36 had been in effect in Colorado in 2000, Al Gore would have been President.

In response to all of the pre-election chaos in this sinister political climate, the Justice Department is sending officials all around the country to monitor the elections. Both the Democrats and the Republicans have assembled teams of the country's top lawyers in case of a disputed outcome (translated, in case the OTHER guy wins). And interestingly, Florida and Ohio are not accomodating Global Exchange, representatives from Mexico and Europe to watch over the electoral procedures, instead opting for federal officials.

And this is supposed to be America, the beacon of Democracy? Land of the free, home of the brave? What a fucking joke. I bet elections in any South American country in the 1980's were less corrupt than in this comical farce of a country. America is nothing but a country of political clowns, and they should be embarrassed that their ostensible "democracy" is being looked at through a microscope by virtually every country in the world. Democracy in America is an illusion.

And all of this election coverage about the race between John Kerry and Bush being tight and in a "statistical dead heat" is an illusion, too. Because no matter who may seem to hold the advantage, no matter who's leading in the polls or supported by Springsteen or Schwarznegger, on November 2nd, America's favourite nigger, George W. Bush, will have stolen yet another election. You've read about an Orwellian society, I'm sure. Well guess what? You're living in one, and The United States of America is Big Brother.

Kerry and his lawyers will haggle just as Gore did four years ago, but then he must concede, albeit bitterly. Oh, the agony of defeat.

Call it a case of deja vu, but make no mistake, this election in 2004 has already been rigged so that there is no possible way for Bush to lose. The State of Florida, governed by the President's brother Jeb, has fixed the polls and set everything in place to make sure of this. A BBC report in England goes into detail about how this is done, but the report is being repressed in the States.

Remember when Adolf Hitler said that the best way to conceal something is with the broadest publicity? In 2000, with his brother sitting by his side, George W. Bush said, "You know something? We are gonna win Florida. Mark My words. You can WRITE IT DOWN".

The same can be said for this, the 2004 election. But don't just write it down. Carve it in stone.

© 2004 Aaron Bayley