I voted last night, even though I just watched this movie : google video
It shows how easy it is to rig an election, from the optical scanner to the main accounting computer. I really felt like crying, and I voted straight Green party as I was reminded that both Gore and Kerry refused to challenge questionable elections. Democrats are more evil than Republicans.
But that’s just my opinion. Here are the facts:
I fed my ballots into the reader and a young guy gave me a sticker that said “I count because I voted”. I asked for a reciept, thinking it would be nice to confirm that the scanner read what I intended to mark. The kid pointed to the sticker in my hand, and to the little stubs from the five separate ballots I completed. The stubs only showed I’d been given a ballot. There was no way for me to confirm the machine read my ballots correctly. Isn’t that weird? How hard is it to print a reciept, like at a grocery store? But it’s not an option. So I have to trust people who program machines. Great.
My voting machine was this big clunky old metal thing that looked like an iron lung. I pulled
a giant handle over to the right, flipped little switches next to the people I voted for, then
cranked the giant handle back over to the left to lock the votes in. I have no idea how it works.
Maybe the 80 year old woman who let me in the booth knows.
Comment by KR — November 8, 2006 @ 6:26 pm
In Milwaukee yesterday, a man walked in to vote only to find that someone voted under his identity only a few minutes before. The gap was so small that one of the ladies shouted out “He just voted!” The man was able to prove he was the real McCoy and the old ladies had no idea what to do.
What is so horrible about requiring photo ID to vote? Anyone can go to the DMV and get identification. I hear Democrats bristle at the thought, saying it’s discriminatory. How is this so?
Love the receipt idea. Doesn’t have to tie you to the vote, just tells you what it thinks it read. However, I’m guessing this hasn’t been pursued because they have to keep the voters flowing. What if you disputed the results as scanned? Do we stop the presses to reset the system and you return to the back of the line to vote again? If that was how it worked, would you wait in line to vote all over again?
Comment by Lyle_S — November 8, 2006 @ 7:59 pm
On the one hand, it is another hurdle for poor people. If you don’t have any ID, are you gonna go to the DMV for up to 14 hours of waiting to get an ID that will cost you thirty five bucks and a day’s lost wages (minimun wage is what, $5.50? 6.50?) That’s two days of pay (the ID and the day spent at the DMV) you lost just to exercise your obligation/right to vote. For most of us, showing a photo id isn’t a problem. For wicked poor people and people taught to fear the government because their race is disproportianately beaten by police and sent to jail for longer terms for similar crimes (I’m talking white and black here) a trip to the DMV isn’t in the cards.
On the other hand, I have to show ID to use the public library, why not prove it’s me voting? But, the amount or should I say level of fraud commited by a person claiming to be another would be miniscule compared to stuffing ballot boxes the night before the election hall opens, and it is far easier to spot. I think Democrats feel like the poor working class person is always held to a higher/tougher standard of conduct with more severe penalties than the richer more powerful people.
As for the reciept idea, yes, I would want my vote to count correctly. I want to vote my conscience, not a computer glitch or fraud. Why must the votes be counted by the next day? Why do we only have one day to vote? Congress takes a recess of how many months? They aren’t passing any laws or doing any legislating, so it can’t be because time is of the essence. It would seem to be because the less people can vote, the easier it is to manipulate that vote.
If you voted for Schwarzenegger (SP?) and your reciept said Larry Flint, wouldn’t you want the machine checked out? Wouldn’t you want your vote to be counted correctly?
Waiting in line, there aren’t lines where I vote because there is polling station every few blocks. It doesn’t make sense that people should wait in line for hours to vote. Why do they have us vote on TUESDAYS????? WHY NOT A FUCKING THREE DAY WEEKEND TO VOTE???? OR A FRIDAY SATURDAY, COUNT THE FUCKING VOTES SUNDAY AND GET THE BASTARDS OUT OF OFFICE ON MONDAY?????????
BECAUSE THEY DON”T WANT EVERYONE VOTING, THEY WANT PEOPLE WHO ARE BOSSES TO VOTE. BOSSES CAN TAKE ANY TIME THEY WANT TO LEAVE AND CAST A BALLOT. THE GUY ON THE PRODUCTION LINE – sorry, I shouldn’t keep yelling, the guy on the production line has to clock out a five and go stand in line with all the other wage slaves, think about dinner he’s not eating, and eventually say fuck it, the systems fixed, my vote doesn’t count anyway, and he goes home. That’s our democracy.
That’s my opinion. I’m not the first to think this way. There are conspiracy theories all over the web.
The point is, if my reciept says one thing, open the box, look at my ballot, if the machines wrong – stop using it. fix it. right there. Otherwise, no one knows there was a problem, and it would never be corrected.
I hope you know I’m not mad at you Lyle, just a little high strung after watching that movie…
Comment by jon — November 8, 2006 @ 8:33 pm