Here's an important post from Mark Crispin Miller, reproduced in full: Friends, the paperback edition of Fooled Again is on its way to bookstores, and available on Amazon.Mr. Miller may be too shy to say this, but I have no such qualms:
This version of the book includes a vast new afterword, which tells a most important story. First of all, it is a detailed history of the US press's bizarre response to the whole subject of election fraud -- especially bizarre, as it was the leftist press that did the most destructive work of all. Here I deal specifically with Mother Jones, The Nation, TomPaine.com and Salon, all of which helped propagate the myth that there has been "no evidence" of theft or fraud in the 2004 election. As I make clear in this version of the book, I don't believe that this was a conspiracy, but something subtler and more innocent -- and yet, therefore, more dangerous than any conscious plot. Here I deal not just with the reception of my book, but with the silence toward, and/or derision of, the writings of Steve Freeman, Bob Fitrakis, Harvey Wasserman, Steve Rosenfeld, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Greg Palast, Brad Friedman, Paul Lehto, Jonathan Simon, David Moore and others who have tried to spread the word.
Secondly, the paperback edition lays out the abundant evidence of fraud in the 2006 elections, which were reportedly as crooked as the process two years earlier. That the Democrats apparently picked up some 29 House seats has been used, by some, to argue that the voting system is as sound as the proverbial dollar. In fact, there is an ever-growing body of strong evidence -- evidence of many kinds -- that the Democrats did a whole lot better than they think, winning a veto-proof House majority, and also taking back the Senate. In short, the GOP was all but wiped out in 2006. That party's dead, but it refuses to lie down, and the illusion that it's still alive is based entirely on election fraud, as many of the victories that it appeared to "win" are highly dubious, to say the least.
The appearance of this book could not be timelier. The US Attorney scandal has been making it quite clear that this regime is, finally, all about election fraud: the only way that they could ever possibly prevail, as their agenda is far too extreme for the American majority. Without a massive program of election fraud and vote suppression (and plenty of compliance by "the liberal media," and, no less, the acquiescence of the Democrats), such a party never could have won the votes of more than a minority, however zealous that minority may be.
And yet the link between this scandal and the process of election fraud has been suppressed (for reasons that I deal with in the paperback of Fooled Again). We keep on hearing smart and admirable people coming up with reasons why "John Kerry lost" -- credible and even edifying reasons, but utterly beside the point, as Kerry didn't lose. While it is true that his campaign was managed idiotically, and true too that the Democrats are highly compromised and all too often cowardly, the fact is that we voted to get rid of Bush, and voted thus despite our general lukewarmness toward the other party and its presidential drive.
It is also crucial that we get the point ASAP because the House is set to pass Rush Holt's e-voting reform bill, HR 811: a piece of legislation comfortably "bipartisan" in its appeal -- and, for that very reason, not a real solution to what's ailing this democracy. Although often hailed as a necessary "first step," HR 811, as it stands right now, will only make our situation worse. It will leave the voting system largely as it is today, except with "paper trails," which will finally not prevent more electronic fraud (while sustaining the illusion that our votes are more secure).
And, finally, we had better get the point right now because Bush-style election fraud is spreading all across the globe. The presidential race in Mexico was obviously stolen, through sophisticated measures other than the use of DRE machines (as Mexico relies on paper ballots); and there has been convincing evidence of fraud throughout the east of France in the recent presidential contest there, and some questions too about the recent race in Scotland. As the first democracy in modern history -- and, once upon a time, a crucial inspiration to enlightened minds throughout the world -- the US must not only gets it own wrecked house in order, but ally itself with democratic efforts everywhere.
It's time for us, at last, to stop blaming ourselves for Bush's reign, because We the People never voted for him. It's time, at last, for real reform of the election system; and that depends on an honest national discussion of the truth about what Bush & Co. has really done to this democracy. I urge you, therefore, to read this new edition of my book, and to help me spread the word about it.
This is an extremely important book. You should buy it and read it and share it as widely as possible.