Author Topic: Echos of 2000 Still Audible (Read 821 times)

Holden McGroin · « **on:** November 02, 2003, 06:39:43 PM »

MIAMI — With the 2004 presidential election just a year away, cutting edge voting machines once touted as foolproof are coming under fire.

"There's no paper trail," said Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Fla., "And there's no assurance that what you put into the machines actually happens."

Following the Florida recount in the 2000 presidential election, voter confidence was at a record low, elections officials nationwide scrambled to locate weaknesses in the system and lawmakers ponied up hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to buy tens of thousands of touch-screen voting machines).
Touch-screen machines record votes on computer hard drives — no receipt, no paper record and critics say, no way to detect election fraud.

"Without a hard copy to go back and verify so that the average person can actually feel comfortable you are risking any confidence in elections, and that is the central activity of democracy," said political activist Sam Fields.

Toad · « **Reply #1 on:** November 02, 2003, 07:06:14 PM »

Well, it can ONLY be unfair if the "other" guy wins.

If YOUR guy would have won in exactly the same way, it'd be fair.

GRUNHERZ · « **Reply #2 on:** November 02, 2003, 07:23:42 PM »

So the Democrats are predicting a Bush win now - I mean they are allready saying that his reelection will be fraud... I wonder what this will do to the morale of their, what is it now, 47 presidential candidates?

Torque · « **Reply #3 on:** November 02, 2003, 08:48:28 PM »

No worries Grunz, HAL is a Republican.

Sixpence · « **Reply #4 on:** November 02, 2003, 09:04:10 PM »

I think what this thread says is we went from the frying pan into the fire. This is pretty disturbing.

GRUNHERZ · « **Reply #5 on:** November 02, 2003, 09:15:13 PM »

Good morning Torque.

Toad · « **Reply #6 on:** November 03, 2003, 08:27:37 AM »

What Waxler is saying is that he wants a "paper trail".

Let's see.. when was that little Florida election snafu?

Seems a bit late to be just now considering the need for documentary paper proof of the ballet.

Cripes, where was he when they were initially deciding how to fix that problem?

And speaking of "proof", have they done ANYTHING to curb voter fraud? You know, where non-citizens, felons and dead people don't get to vote? Where there is a good, standard system of using and counting absentee ballots?

I thought not.

NM.

Sixpence · « **Reply #7 on:** November 03, 2003, 09:16:06 AM »

I would like to see a receipt. You vote on an electronic screen. If they come back to you and say "you voted for hillary clinton", and you say, "I voted for GW bush", what proof do you have? And you can't change your vote. I think this is what they are getting at.

capt. apathy · « **Reply #8 on:** November 03, 2003, 09:39:31 AM »

Quote

Where there is a good, standard system of using and counting absentee ballots?

our system up here seems to be working flawlessly for several years.

very simple, yes/no areas to be colored in next to the name (like a multiple-guess test in highschool).

a spot by each persons name if you are voting on people.

ballots go out in the mail a couple weeks before election along with the voters pamphlet.

you can take your time with each issue, read up on it in the pamphlet, look for debates ect coming up on public access tv if you are unsure. when you are happy with it mail it in or drop it by the election office.

absentees get the same procedure and all votes(including absentee) are counted on election day.

the added benifit is that it incourages political advertising to go a bit more in depth on why they want you to vote one way or another. since they don't know if you are going to mail yours in 2 weeks early or line up with 100 other cars to drop it off 15 minutes before the polls close, they cant just bombard you with superficial adds 48 hours before election time.

Toad · « **Reply #9 on:** November 03, 2003, 09:46:21 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Sixpence
what proof do you have? And you can't change your vote. I

There's no system in the US that I know of that tracks individual votes by each voter. There's no system that allows you to change your vote after you've voted in accordance with the procedures.

Here you check in with the examiners at the polling place. They verify who you are by documentation like driver's license or birth certificate. You are then checked against the rolls of registered voters. If you check out, you are allowed to go into a curtained booth and place your vote. However, there is NO POSSIBLE WAY to trace which individual person voted for what or whom. It's designed to be a "secret ballot"; always has been.

When you leave, you don't get to go back in and say "I want to change my vote" either. Once you vote, you're done.

john9001 · « **Reply #10 on:** November 03, 2003, 10:31:40 AM »

this is an outrage, how can we tell who won without counting hanging,dimpled,and "i think this person voted for gore" chads.

Scootter · « **Reply #11 on:** November 03, 2003, 11:17:37 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by john9001
this is an outrage, how can we tell who won without counting hanging,dimpled,and "i think this person voted for gore" chads.

yea, and what about tracking voter intent, you know determining what the voter wanted when he dident vote.

This is crap I want a crayon and a drawing of the faces and let me color in the one I want to win. (only color in one face)