Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Why the difference in ballot questions?

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On June 28, 2010 I emailed the GA Board of Elections because I was not satisfied with the response from our local board of elections personnel about registering with Republican or Democrat party affiliation. I wanted to register as an Independent as I did in Florida.

This is the response I received from Rhonda Brown, Operations Coordinator, SOS Elections Division:

Thank you for your email.
The State of Georgia does not register voters with any party affiliation.  During a primary election, a registered voter may cast a ballot in the Republican or Democratic Primary, but not both.  There will be no choice to make for the general election because all candidates will be on one ballot. If I may be of further assistance, please let me know.

So here we are for today's election and there are ballot questions for Republicans and Democrats but they are not the same. I see the question asked in the comments of the Augusta Chronicle article and maybe an email to the local media will provide the real answer but of course only after the election.

Republican ballot questions

1. Should Georgia have casino gambling with funds going to education?
2. Do you support ending the current practice of unlimited gifts from lobbyists to state legislators by imposing a $100 cap on such gifts?
3. Should active duty military personnel who are under the age of 21 be allowed to obtain a Georgia weapons license?
4. Should citizens who wish to vote in a primary election be required to register by their political party affiliation at least 30 days prior to such primary election?
5. Should the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to provide that the paramount right to life is vested in each innocent human being from his or her earliest biological beginning without regard to age, race, sex, health, function, or condition of dependency?
6. Should the Richmond County School Board members be limited to serve only 2 four year terms?
7. Should the sheriff, solicitor general, coroner, clerk of superior court, probate judge, tax commissioner, and civil court judges elections be non-partisan?
8. Should the Augusta-Richmond County Commission pass an ordinance banning smoking in public places?
9. Should the state of Georgia pass legislation to allow for gambling on horse racing in Georgia?
10. Should the Augusta-Richmond County Commission pay for the moving of families out of Hyde Park subdivision?

Democrat ballot questions

1. Should the Georgia Constitution be amended to allow the state to override locally elected school boards’ decisions when it comes to the creation of charter schools in your county or city?
2. Do you support ending current practice permitting unlimited gifts from lobbyists to state legislators?
3. Should Georgia  adopt an income tax credit for home energy costs to support the economic security of our families?
4. Should Georgia reduce sales taxes on made in Georgia products so as to support the growth of small businesses in our state?
5. Currently, the candidates for mayor and commissioners qualify as non-partisan. Would you like the law changed so that they qualify as partisan (Democrat or Republican)?

Just wondering, Normal Ops or SNAFU?

Other posts/sites you may be interested in:

Comments, +1s, reaction box checks are always welcome.

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Power Searching with Google

While completing EDTC 7030 Web Teaching: Design and Development online with ECU, I also took the Power Searching with Google class. If you visit the Power Searching with Google site before July 25, 2012 you will see this message display:

Thank you for your interest in the Power Searching with Google class! The class is now closed. Although you will no longer be able to earn a certificate, you'll still be able to view the videos and do the online activities on your own starting July 25, 2012.



The month of July was full of learning activities, formally and informally. It was cool to revisit some operators that I haven't used in quite awhile and I enjoyed all the classes but my favorite was Class 5 on credibility. Thanks Google!

You can always visit Search Playground or Search Tips and Tricks while you wait on the course to open again for self development purposes. Comments, recommendations, reaction box checks, and +1s are always welcome.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Second Life Virtual Field Trip - Another homework post

For the final assignment this week we have a choice of one of the following projects:
  1. Online Virtual Reality Project using Second Life
  2.  Cloud Computing Projects using Google Docs (now Google Drive)
  3. Blog Project using any blog tool that allows public access.


I am using my blog post to document the Second Life activity. Multi-user virtual environments have a place in the learning environment, although not on the .mil domain. I have participated in conferences and visited NASA and NOAA sites through Second Life but never truly embraced the tool in the learning environment beyond my own educational participation.

Second Life (SL) has a place in education and by the resources available one may be surprised at the educational organizations using Second Life to collaborate. From the Second Life Education Destination Guide to the Second Life Education Wiki.

The image of my teleport visit to ECU (required).

EdTech Island
Bloom's taxonomy steps
Underwater after stepping off of the submarine in NOAA's virtual island

This was another fast and fun exercise in EDTC 7030. I believe the activity benefits the participants who work in the CP32 career field as they discover a variety of tools that may not be familiar or available to them.
These activities support these course goals:
1. Explore and use Internet tools used to deliver web‐based instruction.
2. Apply instructional design components in developing web‐based instruction
3. Identify and demonstrate knowledge of selected Internet technologies and apply them to course development

Thanks to everyone who supported my participation in EDTC 7030. Comments, recommendations, reaction box checks and +1s are always welcome.