Social Action Committee News

Lag B’omer is one of the least understood holidays in the Jewish tradition. But it centers around the importance of counting. This day marks a one-day respite from the anxious anticipation of our counting, day by day, from the beginning of the barley harvest at Pesach to the end of the wheat harvest on Shavuot (or, spiritually speaking, from the journey in the desert to the revelation at Mount Sinai). In our own lives today, we have our own season of trepidation, as we count the days until we can take our own tally of where we stand as a nation. This year, more than ever, it is vital that our votes truly count, and are counted.

To that end, one year ago this May (just two days after last Lag B’omer!) New Jersey representative Rush Holt introduced The Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2003 (H.R. 2239). This bill, which was co-sponsored by 133 congresspeople (including our own district’s representative) provides crucial improvements to the Help America Vote Act of 2002. H.R. 2239 would insure that the new electronic voting machines mandated by HAVA provide a voter-verified paper hard-copy of their vote, a paper trail for any necessary audits, and other measures to insure the security of the software being used and the reliability of the registration and voting process.

Currently, this bill is languishing in the Committee on House Administration. But together, we can urge our representatives to turn this bill into law in time to save the integrity of the 2004 elections. For more information about this process and how you can take action, go to http://www.verifiedvoting.org.

Let’s work together to make all of our voices count in 2004! Lag B’omer is one of the least understood holidays in the Jewish tradition. But it centers around the importance of counting. This day marks a one-day respite from the anxious anticipation of our counting, day by day, from the beginning of the barley harvest at Pesach to the end of the wheat harvest on Shavuot (or, spiritually speaking, from the journey in the desert to the revelation at Mount Sinai). In our own lives today, we have our own season of trepidation, as we count the days until we can take our own tally of where we stand as a nation. This year, more than ever, it is vital that our votes truly count, and are counted.

To that end, one year ago this May (just two days after last Lag B’omer!) New Jersey representative Rush Holt introduced The Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act of 2003 (H.R. 2239). This bill, which was co-sponsored by 133 congresspeople (including our own district’s representative) provides crucial improvements to the Help America Vote Act of 2002. H.R. 2239 would insure that the new electronic voting machines mandated by HAVA provide a voter-verified paper hard-copy of their vote, a paper trail for any necessary audits, and other measures to insure the security of the software being used and the reliability of the registration and voting process.

Currently, this bill is languishing in the Committee on House Administration. But together, we can urge our representatives to turn this bill into law in time to save the integrity of the 2004 elections. For more information about this process and how you can take action, go to http://www.verifiedvoting.org.

Let’s work together to make all of our voices count in 2004!