Michigan, you peach of the Midwest, you just might decide the whole thing. And guess what? You can start voting early, in-person at your county clerk’s office today! Find everything you need to know with the @votesaveamerica guide here. votesaveamerica.com/state/michigan/
In 2016, Trump won here by just over 10,000 votes. Yes, you read that right. That’s less than 10% of the Big House. Your 16 electoral votes are well and truly up for grabs, so please, pretty please do everything you can to be sure your vote gets counted.
Starting today, 9/24, you can vote absentee early, in-person at the office of your county clerk. Not sure where that is? Head over here: mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index
During these bleak, unending pandemic days, voting early in-person is MUCH safer than doing it in person on Election Day. You’re more likely to encounter short lines and be in and out quickly.
Wear a mask. Keep your distance. Bring some hand sanitizer. Remember those inspiring scenes from Fairfax? You can feel that hope too!
Not comfortable going in-person? Makes sense. Applications for absentee ballots were mailed to all Michigan voters. Can’t find yours? Get another here: mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Home/VoteAtHom…
The Michigan Secretary of State recommends everyone voting by mail send their ballots back by October 20th. Yes, you read that right. *OCTOBER 20th* Why so early, you ask? Because Trump and his goons decided to ratfuck the postal system. Voting early is the way to beat them.
You can track your absentee ballot to ensure it has arrived right here. It’s the most exciting and anxiety-inducing track-your-package software ever invented. mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index
Don’t trust that your ballot will be delivered through the mail? You can return it in-person to your county clerk’s office, or to one of the 700 ballot drop boxes around the state. Find your drop box here: mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index
Not registered to vote? No problem. Get it done before *OCTOBER 19th* or in person on Election Day. Bring proof of residence to your county clerk’s office, or just do it online right here. mvic.sos.state.mi.us/registervoter
You did it? You voted? Now go volunteer. You can do it in Michigan, or in another battleground state. The team @votesaveamerica has you covered here too. This election is too important not to do everything you can. votesaveamerica.com/save-america/ Be a voter. Be a volunteer. Save America.
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One of the many things that’s become clear in this hideous Ohio case is that there are a lot of “pro-life” folks out there who have really not thought through or DO NOT UNDERSTAND what the laws THEY WANTED PASSED *do.* /1
Some forced-birth advocates do understand their laws and are ghoulishly ok with them. But I think a lot of conservatives just assume, “Oh, exception for rape and incest, that means I will never have to hear a story that makes me uncomfortable!” /2
They haven’t thought about the real life circumstance of a 10yo needing an abortion, or any situation involving rape or incest, really. Like, should a 10yo girl have to PROVE they were raped? And then, if a 10yo doesn’t have to, why should a 16yo? 29yo? What level of proof? /2
What IS the pregnancy rate for those under 18? 16? 14? I’ve been searching for data but a lot of it is 8y or more old, and youth pregnancy rates have been falling for years now. I’ve found some recent data at the state level but nothing national. /1
In what I have found, we could get horror stories like the one out of Ohio almost every week. For instance, in Mississippi in 2019, 53 girls 10-14 were raped and *reported* pregnant. (Miss. age of consent is 16.) 42 gave birth. 11 were permitted abortions. 1 one of them died. /2
*Reported* I think is a real key word here. Remember, Mississippi is the state that gave us Dobbs. msdh.ms.gov/phs/2019/Summa… /3
Mental health PSA: You can tell yourself “I’m fine” all you want, and you can maybe even *feel* “fine” but your body has a way of telling you when you are not. Today, I cried at the Home Depot bc I couldn’t find my credit card. Yesterday, I cried bc I think my dog is lonely. /1
Sometimes I feel a tight band around my chest, and I tell myself it’s asthma. I do not think it is. Sometimes my heart races. I tell myself maybe I’m out of shape. Probably not. I forget things (credit card), work stuff. I want to be fine. But my body knows better. /2
Ystday I called a friend, crying about money this time (not great!), who reminded me I have 1) just moved, literally the most stressful thing someone can do 2) just lived thru a once-in-a-century-natural-disaster and 3) Pandemic! A now year-long exercise in isolation & grief. 3/
I mention my time in psych wards occasionally, I’m not ashamed of it and it’s definitely something changed my life and ways of thinking in extremely positive ways. But I have never thought of it as relevant to my punditry. Until this cycle. /1
Mostly, I’ve been reminding people to not reflexively call racists and conspiracy theorists “crazy,” because a) they probably aren’t b) most of the people I know with mental illnesses not racist and c) people with mental illnesses are usually the *target* of bigotry. /2
But today I’ve been thinking about the experience of being hospitalized against your will, of the arrogance that infects (sorry) you when you think you don’t really need to be there. /3
Pennsylvania, you’re home to no shortage of American heroes, most importantly Gritty, everyone’s favorite anti-fascist. In November, you could all be heroes, because according to the talking heads, you are THE *tipping point* in this election.
American democracy might hinge on you. So, fittingly, your state has some dumb rules about voting. One especially dumb rule is about “naked ballots,” or ballots that aren’t returned in the secrecy envelope, which is labeled "official election ballot" here.
Allegedly to enhance election privacy and security, it could disenfranchise you! For your ballot to count, you must place it in the secrecy envelope, then in the return envelope, which you sign and date. Not in the secrecy envelope? It WILL NOT COUNT.
We all need the holiday season a little more this year. What better way to kick it off than with the most important holiday until Halloween, National Voter Registration Day? The incredible team @votesaveamerica has got you covered. Votesaveamerica.com/register
As the last few days have underlined, this is the most important election of our lives. The first step in making sure your vote counts in November is by checking your registration! Every year, some ghoulish GOP legislature purges people from voting rolls on bullshit grounds.
Many of those same ghoulish state legislatures try to keep you from voting by placing registration deadlines *way* before Election Day. Find your state’s deadline here, and be sure you give yourself plenty of time to register.