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Get Out and Vote!

By: Joanne | November 04, 2008 | Category: General

voteYou know that it’s Election Day, right? I assume you’ve been getting as many political mailings and phone calls as I have so I don’t know how you could miss it.

Did you vote yet? Are you planning to vote? I would have voted already if I lived in a state that provided for early voting, but I don’t. I’m going to vote during my lunch break today. I always look forward to voting, even if sometimes it doesn’t end up the way I want it to. At least I try and I don’t leave these important decisions up to everyone else.

I hope you’re going to vote today. I’m counting on all you highly intelligent readers of the GovGab blog to weigh in on the future of our country. If you’re not sure if your polling place is still open, check on its hours because they vary from state to state.

If you go out to vote and feel that you’ve been discriminated against or witness voter fraud, there’s something you can do about it. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 protects every American against racial discrimination in voting. The law also protects the voting rights of people with limited English skills.

If you have information about voter fraud, you should contact the nearest office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or your local U.S. Attorney’s office or the Public Integrity Section of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

If you know of activities that intimidate, coerce, threaten, or oppress voters based on race, color, religion, or national origin, report it to the Criminal Section of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Now get out and vote!

| Comments [3] | envelope Email This Entry | Tags: congress   democrat   election   house   joanne   place   polling   president   republican   senate   vote  

 

Get Ready to Vote!

By: Jake | November 03, 2008 | Category: Home and Family

You're familiar with the candidates, you've registered to vote and you're ready for Election Day tomorrow. Right? Well, let's make sure.

polling placeDo you know where your polling place is? If it's like the school where I'll vote, you probably have seen a "Vote Here" sign pointing at it for the last couple of weeks. If you don't know your polling place, it is generally printed on your voter registration card. You can also find it online at your state's polling place locator and be sure to check the polling place hours too. It's also not a bad idea to check to see if there are voter ID requirements in your state.

How are you going to get to your polling place? I can walk to my polling place, but many people have to drive. If you don't have a car or someone to give you a ride, there are local organizations that can help you out. If you need help getting to the polls, call your state election office to see what options are in your area.

Will you have enough time to vote? With high voter turnout expected, you may want to make an arrangement with your employer to take some time off work (or leave) just in case you find long lines tomorrow. There are no federal laws that require employers to give employees leave for voting. The laws vary since each state (or territory) sets up standards for employers to give employees leave for voting.

Most states prohibit employers from firing an employee for taking leave to vote. Some states say the leave must be paid and in others it can be unpaid. The one thing these laws all have in common is that you have some responsibilities to your employer. For instance, your state law may say you are only eligible for leave if your polls aren't open long enough, either before or after work, for you to vote, or that you must give your employer some advance notice.

If you have concerns, the first thing you should do is check your company's leave policies for Election Day. If you want to compare them to your state laws, you should be able to find those laws at your state election or state's attorney general offices.

| Comments [2] | envelope Email This Entry | Tags: jake   poll_hours   poll_transportation   polling_place   voting   voting_leave_policy  

 

Happy Halloween Ghouls and Boos

By: Ginger | October 31, 2008 | Category: Fun

Kids in Halloween costumesMy earliest Halloween memory is being dressed as Casper, the friendly ghost, when I was 4. I insisted on sleeping in that costume for the next 3 years and probably would be sleeping in it today, if it hadn’t been tragically and accidentally (so my mother claims) thrown out in the garbage.

My parents would sit us down every Halloween for a safety lecture. They would warn us about razor blades being hidden in Halloween candy; hence the mandate to not eat any candy until they checked it out. As a kid, I had a suspicion that this was really more about my parents wanting to pick out the good candy first. In hindsight, I actually think this is fair. There ought to be some perks to being a parent.

Nowadays, the Food and Drug Administration, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the National Fire Protection Association, and the American Red Cross have web pages devoted to sharing Halloween safety information. In addition, the USA.gov Halloween page has links to all kinds of interesting Halloween facts and customs. Check out the Halloween pages from the American Folklife Center, the White House, the Patent and Trade Office, and the U.S. Census Bureau.

One Halloween, while trick-or-treating, a man told me that I had to do a trick to get my treat. I did an out-of-control cartwheel that nearly took out 2 ghosts, a princess, and a lumberjack. I remember grumbling to my sister about the “old geezer” who made me do a trick to get my treat.

Now, I am the “old geezer.” I make trick-or-treaters earn their treats. I sit outside with the candy and our 2 dogs. I tell the kids they can take one piece of candy or a handful by getting Doc and Daisy to do tricks. Most opt for the handful, so I show the kids the commands for sit, play dead, roll-over, and dance. When the kids get the dogs to complete the correct trick, they grab a big handful of the good stuff.

We know some of the neighborhood kids pretty well. For them, I bring out our cat. I tell the kids if they can get her to do a trick, I will give them my car. They try, but Keeboo just yowls at them and smacks them with her clawless paw. My husband says one day Keeboo may actually cooperate and I will have to give my car to a 5-year-old, but I’m not worried.

So, what Halloween memories do you have?

| Comments [5] | envelope Email This Entry | Tags: ginger   halloween  

 

Preparing for a Layoff

By: Nancy | October 30, 2008 | Category: Money

It happened again just now.

Another friend told me he's been laid off. That's the second this week. And there are so many others who are hearing rumors that their jobs could be next or who have had their work hours cut so severely that they think it's just a matter of time before they're pink slipped too.

laid off employee's box of possessionsIf your company has lost a lot of business or has been bought out recently or you're just sensing from talk around the office that your job is vulnerable, asking yourself a few questions now can help you be prepared if the worst happens later.


What does my current financial picture look like?
The rule of thumb is to have the equivalent of six months' salary in your savings account. Most people I know can't afford to do that. Take a look at what you have and think about how you can cut your monthly expenses. Can you...

  • Refinance your mortgage?
  • Cut any services or subscriptions like cable TV or DVD rentals?
  • Renegotiate or get out of contracts with the gym or the daycare center?
  • Get a deferment on your student loans?

How out of date is my resume?
Commercial job search sites like Monster.com offer up-to-date tips for crafting the right resume for the line of work you're going after. And I found a slew of resume templates that you can download if you use Microsoft Word.

Who do I know?
I got this job through networking. I gave a friend a copy of my resume and she gave it to the then-editor of the Consumer Information Catalog who passed it on to my future bosses. You never know how you're going to find your next job. So let friends and family know, join social networking sites like Facebook and LinkedIn and job hunting sites and get the word out. Also consider setting up a special job hunting email account rather than using your personal or family email and think about changing the voice mail on the phone number you'll be using on your resume; as cute as your two-year-old might sound singing on the home answering machine, a potential employer may not be so amused.

How does unemployment insurance work?
It's one of those things you don't think about 'til you need it. But if you can get familiar with it now, it'll be one less thing you'll have to figure out later.

If you are laid off, Job-hunt.org has excellent tips on what to do right away, from negotiating a severance package to continuing your health insurance coverage.

This is a rough time for so many people. What advice do you have for someone who's facing a layoff or job hunting?

| Comments [7] | envelope Email This Entry | Tags: job   layoff   money   nancy   unemployment  

 

TSA's Secure Flight Program

By: Colleen | October 29, 2008 | Category: General

Depending on how you look at it, my friend's mom has the fortunate or unfortunate luck to be named, "Julia Roberts." As I'm sure you namecan guess, when filling out forms and making reservations she tends to raise an eyebrow or two.

We've all been in similar situations where our name matches that of someone else. It usually involves a small bit of confusion, and then all is back to normal. But what if your name matches that of someone on the terrorism "watch list" for airline travel?

On October 22, TSA announced the implementation of the "Secure Flight" program.

Secure Flight is designed to enhance the security of domestic and international commercial air travel through the use of improved watch list matching. Beginning in early 2009, airlines will be required to collect a passenger's full name, date of birth, and gender when making an airline reservation. The hope is that doing this will eliminate "same name" inconveniences while at the airport.

Secure Flight also requires that all "watch list" screening be done entirely by TSA, creating one uniform list of people who potentially pose a terrorist threat.

If you were in charge of TSA, what would you do to make air travel more secure?

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