Article: OpEdNews goes to Washington. Truth, action, and the American way.

Sometimes, frequently maybe, those of us who individually try to raise the issue of voting accuracy may feel like our efforts fall on deaf ears. However, recently a press release came across my desk that suggests we just might make a difference after all.

"WASHINGTON, D.C. Voter Action, a national non-profit organization working to protect the integrity of US elections, filed a complaint yesterday with the U.S. Justice Department challenging the recently-announced merger of the nation's two largest voting systems companies, Election Systems & Software and Diebold's subsidiary, Premier Election Solutions."

Old news, yes. But what this action signifies is not. For this line, "http: //opednews.com/articles/ES-S-Acquires-Premier-Elec-by-Lani-Massey-Brown-090903-993.html" was tucked smartly within the powerful letter of complaint that was hand delivered to the U.S. Department of Justice by the worldwide law firm of White & Case representing Voter Action. There were several other references cited in this important complaint besides VoterAction.org: CBSnews.com, NYTimes.com, WashingtonTimes.com, the Pew Charitable Trusts, ElectionDefenseAlliance.org , VerifiedVotingFoundation.org, ampedstatus.com, www.CommonDreams.org, myfloridalegal.com and ES&S's own website essvote.com.

The change reaction set in motion by the wholesale unfairness of ES&S's election monopoly carried forward from individual to e-group to court as voting advocates across the internet objected to one private company seizing control over a staggering 70% of our country's elections: BradBlog.com, BlackBoxVoting, ElectionDefenseAlliance.org, FloridaFairElections, Democracy for New Hampshire, Pokey Anderson of Pacifica Radio, Sarasota Alliance for Fair Elections, talknationradio.com, VotingNews and my most often visited Ellen Theisen's group RoundTableOnVoting and VotersUnit.org. Many of these sites and authors found their way to OpEdNews, if not in first person then as key references.

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For my part, I was alerted to the monopoly by VotingNews and referenced information for my ES&S Acquires Premier article from VotersUnite.org and Florida Fair Elections Coalition's "Florida's Vanished Votes Reports."

Did the Voter Action / White & Case complaint influence the U.S. Department of Justice? We can only surmise. Yet on March 8, 2010, the Department of Justice Antitrust Division announced the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, along with nine state attorneys general, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. ES&S will be required to divest the Premier/Diebold voting system assets it acquired from Premier Election Solutions Inc. in September 2009. (See Brad Friedman's DOJ TO REQUIRE ES&S TO SELL OFF ASSETS FROM DIEBOLD MERGER CITING ANTI-TRUST CONCERNS, which includes BlackBoxVoting.org's alarming United States maps visually illustrating ES&S's control over elections before and after their takeover of Premier/Diebold.)

However, this complaint in and of itself signifies the importance of truth, action, and the American way. A change reaction of events and information that individually spoken would carry little or no weight, let alone be heard. We might as well whisper to the wind. But together, the e-swell of factual, relevant, documented information presented and maintained in worldwide repositories of news, such as OpEdNews can and does make a difference, emphasizing the importance of taking a stand on relevant issues and on each of our voices joining the chorus and singing strong.

Thank you, Voter Action. And thank you OpEdNews for offering a first class repository of news and information where individuals can speak out and be heard.