Politics as Usual?

Sooooo. No matter how one feels about voting, I am sure most individuals at least appreciate the right they have to vote. As we know, many countries do not extend the right to vote to their citizens.  No matter how complex our system is, I still appreciate the fact that I can exercise my vote if I so choose. This year, that right was yanked from me. Like a thief in the night, the Election Board swiped my voting privileges right beneath me, and without giving me a fair chance to be able to correct the situation in time for me to vote today. They sent me a letter notifying me of their findings WEEKS after I registered to vote for this year's election. Whether I was going to vote today is irrelevant. Who I was going to vote for is irrelevant. What IS relevant is that I do not have the right. Somehow, the Election Board's records indicated that I am a felon, and therefore, am not capable of voting without a pardon from the government. Now, the issue here is I AM NOT A FELON! I have NEVER even been in a court room for anything involving a felony! I do not know who made the mistake, and really, WHO made the mistake is not important. The important part is that the mistake has been made. The bottom line is, this election is arguably one of the most important elections in history. It definitely is the most important in my lifetime. The fact that I cannot participate in it, deeply disappoints me. How could such a mistake be made, but more importantly, why can't such a mistake be corrected in a reasonable amount of time...especially considering the speed of modern technology. When I went to see about correcting this mistake, I ran into a brick wall. Not only do I have to file a formal appeal, but I have to wait 6-8 WEEKS before my situation will be corrected. I guess maybe by the time the 2016 election comes, they will have it all ironed out? What really struck me was that the receptionist I spoke with shared with me some disturbing information. She said that she has been working with the Virginia State Police and closely with Election Board for over 20 years; She stated that never in her 20+ years has she seen as many "mistakes" with people's criminal records when election day was nearing. After inspecting my letter, she was baffled at the form they placed on the back for me to fill out; she had never seen this type of form before. "Wow?" she said. She added that the previous election in 2008 was pretty bad, in concern to mistakes made with criminal records, but that this 2012 election has been disheartening to see. Not only with me, but with MANY minorities. WHY is the burning question....