Author: Tom Darby

As early voting in Nevada wraps up today, Friday, November 1, voters who opted for mail-in ballots have a convenient way to track their status.

The Secretary of State’s office has launched Nevada BallotTrax, an online tool available at nevada.ballottrax.net/voter, allowing voters to monitor their ballots. To use BallotTrax, voters must enter their name, birth date, and zip code. The tool also offers the option to receive real-time updates by adding contact details.

For assistance with BallotTrax, contact the Secretary of State’s office at (775) 687-8683 or by emailing nvelect@sos.nv.gov.

foot meets autumn glow
candlelight leaps in shadow
pumpkin’s flicker fades

It was with a clenched jaw and a boiling rage that I dragged myself back into the hellhole they called high school—except now it was worse. It had transformed into a twisted prison under the thumb of those uninformed puppets from Warren Air Force Base. The place reeked of stale air and control as if the walls themselves were in on the joke that was my life.

They zeroed in on me like vultures, circling for their next meal, slapping the label “dorm rat” on me like I was less than nothing. A joke. And for what? For their sins. Not once did I snitch or give them a reason to come after me, but that didn’t matter. The paranoia of those weed-smoking cowards hung around my neck like a noose, tightening with every fucking glance they shot my way. They got to walk around like kings, laughing behind their hands while I ended up in the back of a goddamn ambulance, choking on their smoke.

The brass? Those cold-hearted bastards didn’t give a shit. Watching me squirm was their entertainment. Each day, they turned the screws tighter, waiting for me to snap, daring me to. I was their scapegoat, their so-called traitor in a rigged system. They wanted me broken and humiliated. And the worst part? They enjoyed it. “Dorm rat”—someone carved it into my door like a brand, a reminder that I wasn’t even human in their eyes. Every day, another fucking reminder.

I locked myself away in my room like a cornered animal. Not because I was scared—fuck no—but because I had to. The rage was growing in me, eating away at whatever the person I used to be was left. One wrong word, one wrong look, and I knew I’d explode.

They wanted me to lose it–to lash out so they could point and say, “See? He’s the problem.” But I wasn’t giving them the satisfaction.

I’d get up before dawn, showing, dressing, slipping out like a ghost. It was better than facing the gauntlet of bullshit that awaited me every day.

Each step felt like walking into a buzzsaw of hatred and cruelty, but I kept going. I had to because no one was going to break me. The assholes thought I was their fucking rat, but I wasn’t. I was a caged animal biding my time, waiting.

I wanted to burn their whole fucked-up game to the ground, and they wouldn’t even see it coming. And the thought of that kept me going.

The Republican Party has mobilized thousands of poll watchers across the United States to monitor polling stations on Election Day. While the party claims the effort aims to uphold election integrity, Democratic leaders and advocacy groups are increasingly worried about possible intimidation tactics toward voters and poll workers.

Jim Womack, chairman of a local Republican Party in North Carolina, has been vocal about encouraging volunteers to take a firm approach to spot any “nefarious activity.” He told Reuters that the goal is to guarantee the election’s quality by training volunteers to be “the eyes and ears” at polling stations.

“You’re the people who can make sure all the rules are being followed,” Womack said, adding that he sees alleged vulnerabilities in election laws as an opportunity for fraudulent practices, which he attributes to left-wing agendas. His efforts are part of a broader strategy coordinated by the Republican National Committee (RNC).

According to RNC co-chair Lara Trump, the party has trained 230,000 poll watchers and support staff nationwide, with 5,000 volunteers and 500 attorneys in key battleground states.

“We want eyes on it every time a vote is cast and counted,” she said, emphasizing the goal of maintaining public confidence in the voting process. “We don’t want a single American to feel like their vote doesn’t matter and their vote doesn’t count.”

Republican poll observers are encouraged to complete a checklist to ensure that polling stations close on time, that voting machines are secured, and that machines remain disconnected from the internet. However, the requests may overstep, as poll watchers are not legally entitled to certain procedural information.

Democratic leaders argue that such guidelines are intimidating to, rather than protective of the voting process. Stacey Abrams, founder of the New Georgia Project and Fair Fight Action, described these efforts as an “intentional strategy by the RNC to sow chaos” in elections.

In a recent CNN interview, she said, “We’ve seen the criminalization by Republicans of election workers…there have been intentional strategies adopted to weaken not just confidence but the infrastructure of elections.”

A recent Pew Research poll reflects the underlying concerns over election integrity. While most voters remain confident in their local poll workers and the election process, only 57 percent of Trump supporters believe the election will be without bias, compared to 90 percent of Harris supporters.

The development is part of a historical trend of electoral oversight efforts on both sides. In 2008, tensions rose when two New Black Panther members were seen armed with AK-47-style weapons at a Philadelphia precinct, underscoring concerns over intimidation at polling stations.

Crows on the Rez know how to keep their secrets unless you know what to ask and how to listen.

The earth beneath your feet is thick with history; every footstep stirs the dust of those who walked before. If you stand still long enough, quiet enough, the ground might remember you. It might whisper something if it thinks you are ready to hear.

The land and its inhabitants—crows, trees, stones—are keepers of memory. They watch us with quiet patience, waiting for us to ask the right questions, to remember what we’ve forgotten.

The stories are there, beneath the surface, woven into the earth itself. You can feel it in the way the wind shifts, in the faint tremor beneath the soles of your feet.

The crow is always speaking if you know how to listen. When the sun sets and the sky streaks red, they fly in slow, deliberate circles as if tracing the outlines of forgotten paths in the air.

The crows perch like shadows on the high branches, their eyes glinting like obsidian in the dying light. They are witnesses, observers of all that has been and will be.

They know the stories the wind carries—the old stories that have slipped beyond human memory. They secret those stories in their wings, in the spaces between their sharp cries.

The crows do not speak in words. They speak in silence and pauses between the beats of their wings and the rustle of leaves.

It is not the language of humans, bound by sounds and syllables, but something older, something woven into the fabric of the world itself. It is a language of time and space, of breath and shadow.

They have no use for the trivial questions of the present. The crows do not care about the fleeting worries of the human heart, but they know the deep questions we hesitate to ask. They carry with them the weight of time, of things that stretch far beyond our narrow understanding.

It is best to learn to listen to what they do not say. The answers are not in the noise of this world but in the spaces between, in the shifting of the wind, in how the grass bends as if brushing against a secret too fragile to be heard aloud.

Beneath their black feathers are questions. Questions that haunt the spaces of your mind, that slip in between the sharp calls when the world is quiet. They know things we have forgotten, things the land remembers for us, things it has been keeping safe for generations.

There is something sacred in the silence, something that the crows guard with their watchful eyes. They have seen the world change and land reshaped, but they remain. They are the keepers of time, the guardians of forgotten stories. And they wait for one to ask the right question, and to listen, to remember.

The wind shifts again, and the crows take flight. Their shadows stretch across the land, long and dark, like memories stretching back to the beginning of time. You watch them go, and for a moment, just a moment, you think you hear it—something ancient, something true—whispering in the wind.

Recent revelations have raised concerns regarding Hanadi Nadeem, Democratic candidate for Nevada Assembly District 34, as her past personal and professional associations are coming to light.

Social media posts uncovered in recent weeks show Nadeem expressing admiration for former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, a figure with known ties to Taliban sympathies. During Khan’s tenure, he made headlines for publicly encouraging global support for the Taliban following their violent takeover of Afghanistan.

His statements, which included remarks that the Taliban had “broken the shackles of slavery” from Western powers, came after the Biden administration’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, during which 13 American service members died. Since the Taliban regained control, they have imposed oppressive laws targeting women despite earlier promises to international organizations to protect women’s rights.

The revelations have sparked a fresh wave of criticism for Nadeem, who once served as president of the APPNA (Association of Physicians of Pakistani Descent of North America) Alliance. The group is associated with former Pakistani Ambassador Masood Khan, a controversial figure with alleged ties to extremist groups. U.S. lawmakers accused Mamood of being a “bona fide terrorist sympathizer” after advocating for the release of convicted terrorist Aafia Siddiqui, also known as “Lady Al-Qaeda.”

Critics question Nadeem’s role within the APPNA Alliance and her potential alignment with the controversial views of figures like Masood Khan and Imran Khan. She faces businessman Brandon Davis, a Republican candidate endorsed by Governor Joe Lombardo and Lieutenant Governor Stavros Anthony.

In November, Nevada voters will have the chance to decide whether to remove language from the state constitution that permits forced prison labor, a provision rooted in the legacy of chattel slavery. Nevada Question 2 seeks to revise language in the state constitution related to public entities that benefit individuals with mental illness, blindness, or deafness and protect incarcerated individuals from being compelled to work under the threat of punishment.

Currently, Nevada requires all prisoners—about 10,000 people in the state—to either work or participate in vocational training for 40 hours each week unless they have a medical exemption. Prisoners earn 35 cents an hour for cleaning prison facilities to $24 for fighting wildfires.

The proposed constitutional amendment would abolish slavery and involuntary servitude as criminal punishment in Nevada. Advocates say it would represent a significant step forward in the fight for human rights and fair labor practices.

Nevada’s ballot initiative is part of a broader national movement to remove similar exceptions for slavery from state constitutions. Several states, including Colorado and Alabama, have passed amendments to eliminate such language. However, critics of the proposed changes have raised concerns about the potential costs to the state if minimum wage laws get extended to incarcerated workers.

Supporters of the measure argue that it would also give incarcerated individuals more opportunities for rehabilitation, allowing them to focus on education and therapy rather than being forced into low-paying labor.

Republican groups have redirected millions of dollars to support GOP challenger Sam Brown’s campaign against incumbent Senator Jacky Rosen.

The Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), a prominent Republican-aligned PAC, announced it would pour $6.2 million into the state, marking its first major financial move in Nevada as early voting trends in favor of Republicans. The decision reflects growing optimism within the GOP, bolstered by recent polling showing favorable conditions for Republicans, including former President Donald Trump’s competitive standing in Nevada.

Despite Republican confidence, Brown has consistently lagged behind Rosen in public and private polling. Yet, the fresh infusion of funds indicates the GOP sees a viable path to unseating Rosen and flipping the Senate seat in a state that remains closely watched for its potential swing.

In contrast to their Nevada investments, Republicans are pulling resources from Montana, where American Crossroads, an SLF affiliate, canceled $2.8 million in TV ad buys in the final week of the race. The decision follows GOP optimism in Montana, with Republican Tim Sheehy maintaining a steady lead over Democratic Senator Jon Tester.

By reallocating these funds, Republicans can reinforce their positions in other states like Nevada and Pennsylvania. SLF and American Crossroads have also invested $1 million each to support efforts against Democratic Senator Bob Casey.

Meanwhile, Nevada’s House races are receiving less GOP attention. Republican strategists have chosen not to engage in Nevada’s three Democratic-held competitive House seats, with no airtime reserved in the Las Vegas market.

Recently, a leading Democratic super PAC withdrew several planned ads for the last two weeks of the campaign, further indicating a shift in focus as both parties prepare for final Senate pushes in the state.

Republican groups have redirected millions of dollars to support GOP challenger Sam Brown’s campaign against incumbent Senator Jacky Rosen.

The Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), a prominent Republican-aligned PAC, announced it would pour $6.2 million into the state, marking its first major financial move in Nevada as early voting trends in favor of Republicans. The decision reflects growing optimism within the GOP, bolstered by recent polling showing favorable conditions for Republicans, including former President Donald Trump’s competitive standing in Nevada.

Despite Republican confidence, Brown has consistently lagged behind Rosen in public and private polling. Yet, the fresh infusion of funds indicates the GOP sees a viable path to unseating Rosen and flipping the Senate seat in a state that remains closely watched for its potential swing.

In contrast to their Nevada investments, Republicans are pulling resources from Montana, where American Crossroads, an SLF affiliate, canceled $2.8 million in TV ad buys in the final week of the race. The decision follows GOP optimism in Montana, with Republican Tim Sheehy maintaining a steady lead over Democratic Senator Jon Tester.

By reallocating these funds, Republicans can reinforce their positions in other states like Nevada and Pennsylvania. SLF and American Crossroads have also invested $1 million each to support efforts against Democratic Senator Bob Casey.

Meanwhile, Nevada’s House races are receiving less GOP attention. Republican strategists have chosen not to engage in Nevada’s three Democratic-held competitive House seats, with no airtime reserved in the Las Vegas market.

Recently, a leading Democratic super PAC withdrew several planned ads for the last two weeks of the campaign, further indicating a shift in focus as both parties prepare for final Senate pushes in the state.

fallen leaves whisper
the stillness of Autumn dusk–
life’s breath fades away