Primary Day!

Today is primary day. If you don't have time to read newspapers (or blogs) or acquaint yourself in some other fashion with who's running and what they stand for, Don't Vote. You'd be doing a disservice. It's not about pulling a lever and getting a sticker. It's about making an informed choice. If you don't have time to get informed, that's fine. Just sit this one out.

If voting, polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Florida has a closed primary, but there are also non-partisan races on the ballot that everyone can vote on: judges, and Sheriff, Property Appraiser and Supervisor of Elections.

I don't vote in primaries. But if I did, I would march straight out there and vote against Susan Bucher for Supervisor of Elections. Which means that I would vote for Nelson "Woodie" McDuffie, currently mayor of Delray Beach, who is challenging her.

Susan Bucher

Susan Bucher is a former Democrat state representative from West Palm Beach, and she's very, very political. I would prefer someone who doesn't come to the job with an agenda. This should not be a political position. Think about it. This is the person who counts the votes.

Specifically...Susan Bucher is refusing to work with the state to maintain the roll of registered voters. A check of the state voter roll showed a lot of potential non-citizens, many of whom were voting illegally and diluting the votes of citizens. But Bucher refused to send out notices to those in Palm Beach County asking them to submit verification of their eligibility -- even though these people had identified themselves as non-citizens when obtaining drivers licenses at one point. The words "Voter Purge" made it into a lot of headlines. But this was not a purge at all. It was just asking voters who'd told the state at some point in time that they were not citizens that they needed to confirm that they now Are citizens in order to remain on the voter roll.

Bucher wouldn't have it. She refused to send out the notices. How many non-citizens does Palm Beach County have on its voter roll? No one knows. Bucher doesn't know. She says there are plenty of checks in place to ensure only those who are eligible can register to vote. This is not true. She doesn't understand the system. Thanks to the "Motor Voter" law, you can register to vote on a post card. If you don't have a driver's license or a social security number, you can leave those fields blank. Then you put it in the mail and a week or so later you get your Voter Card. Simple! Then a couple months before the election you can call and request an absentee ballot, and they'll send it to you in the mail -- no ID ever requested, no one ever confirming that you are in fact a real, live person.

A good voter roll is the basis of a free and fair election. Non-citizens voting erodes representative democracy.

http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/ignored-barack-obama-dhs-floridas-request-citizenship-database-review-voting-lists

Update on the Serial Rapist

Many of the stories last year about the violent serial rapist had a Lake Worth dateline, and identified the rapes as occurring here. After consulting a map, I see that none of them actually did.

But they were close, and this person is a threat to every woman in the Lake Worth area. He seems to strike just when everybody assumes he's gone away. So extreme caution should be taken.

The last woman he attacked was young and fit, and she fought back. But he strangled her and she lost consciousness. Sheriff's deputies warn women not to go out walking alone. But one woman was attacked when she went out on her front porch to have a cigarette. A Palm Springs woman was inside her home, sleeping with her two-year-old. She had a gun in the home, but it was locked up and she couldn't get to it, a detective told me last year.

They have to catch this guy before he strikes again.

The last victim, a 22-year-old woman who was attacked on Sept. 23 while speed-walking on the south side of 10th Avenue around the Esperanza Apartments (very close to the Lake Worth city line) at 6:30 in the morning describes the rapist as being short, five-foot-five or five-foot-six and "pudgy" with shoulder-length dark hair and a Spanish accent. He was wearing a white shirt and blue jeans when he pursued her and attacked from behind. In their struggle, she bit one of his index fingers. When she woke up, her purse was gone.

This pastel-colored bag was taken from the last victim. Have you seen it?

One of the earlier victims described him as being maybe from Central America, and said he was wearing basketball or soccer shorts. Judging from his height, it's not likely he's a basketball player.

Soccer, soccer, from Central America, short. Had long hair on September 23. Maybe cut it later that day?? Maybe it's grown out now, and is about 8 inches long??

Who is he? Where is he?

The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office says the investigation is ongoing, but there's been no recent activity.

He's living in our community, or close to it. He's extremely violent, and seems likely to strike again. He must be found before he can. Know anything? Have any information that could possibly help? Call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-458-TIPS.