Florida Moves to End Touch-Screen Voting

[blackascoal]

The end of electronic voting fraud as it is today may soon be just another part of the history and legacy of the Bush years. Florida, the icon of voter fraud, may become the first state in the nation to completely rid itself of touch-screens .. now that Bush brother Jeb is out of office .. thus signaling the end of the Bush's in office forever.

AND, to answer the inevitable question .. yes, there were attempts at fraud in the 2006 elections, and there is evidence .. but they were overwhelmed by the tide of American people determined to rid the nation of republican rule.

February 1, 2007

Florida Moves to End Touch-Screen Voting

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/01/us/01cnd...age&oref=slogin

excerpt ...

DELRAY BEACH, Fla., Feb. 1 — Gov. Charlie Crist today announced plans today to abandon the touch-screen voting machines that many of Florida’s largest counties installed after the disputed 2000 presidential election, instead adopting a statewide system of casting paper ballots counted by scanning machines.

Voting experts said Florida’s move, coupled with new federal voting legislation expected this year, could largely signal the death knell for the paperless electronic machines. If as expected the Florida Legislature approves the $32 million cost of the change, in fact, it will be the nation’s biggest repudiation yet of touch-screen voting, which was widely adopted after the 2000 recount as a state-of-the-art means of restoring confidence that everyone’s vote would count.

Several counties around the country, including Cuyahoga in Ohio and Sarasota in Florida, have exchanged touch-screen machines for others that provide a paper trail. But Florida could become the first state that invested heavily in recent rush to touch screens to reject them so sweepingly.

“Florida is like a synonym for election problems; it’s the Bermuda Triangle of elections,” said Warren Stewart, policy director of VoteTrust USA, a nonprofit group that has advocated optical scanners as more reliable than touch screens. “For Florida to be clearly contemplating moving away from touch screens to the greatest extent possible is truly significant.”

Other states that rushed to buy the touch screens are also starting to move in that direction. Earlier this week, the Virginia state senate passed a bill that would phase out the touch-screen machines as they wear out and replace them with optical scanners. The Maryland Legislature also seems determined to order a switch from the paperless touch screens, although it is not clear yet whether it will require the use of optical scanners or just allow paper printers to be added to the touch screens.

And on Monday, Representative Rush Holt, Democrat of New Jersey, plans to introduce a bill in Congress that would require all voting machines nationwide to produce paper records through which voters can verify that their ballots were recorded correctly. Mr. Holt’s bill would also substantially toughen the requirements for the touch-screen machines that have printers, and experts say this also could give more impetus to the shift toward the optical scanning systems.

Mr. Crist, a Republican, was at times drowned out by whoops and applause when he announced his plan at a civic center in Palm Beach County, the epicenter of the 2000 election standoff and home of the infamous “butterfly ballot” that confused large numbers of voters. The touch screens had replaced the punch-card systems that became infamous that year.

“You should, when you go vote, be able to have a record of it,” Mr. Crist told a few hundred mostly older citizens at the South County Civic Center in Delray Beach, where thousands of residents accidentally voted for Patrick J. Buchanan in 2000 instead of Al Gore because of the confusing ballot design. “That’s all we’re proposing today. It’s not very complicated; it is in fact common sense. Most importantly, it is the right thing to do.”

Mr. Crist’s renunciation of touch-screen voting, just one month after he replaced Jeb Bush as governor of the nation’s fourth-largest state, suggested that the fight for paper voting records, long a pet project of Democrats, might now become more bipartisan.

I take issue with the suggestion that this comes because of the efforts of democrats. This fight has been won by the activists, not democrats, who were many times the very people the activists had to fight, such as in Georgia.

[sharkman]

Dude, you are truly a one trick pony. Your loathing for your own country is remarkable. I sincerely hope your attitudes are not an accurate representation of those of your culture and generation.

[Fortunata]

When did being critical of your country become defined as loathing? Further the post in question wasn't even critical but questioned only the influence as credited by the piece.

[GostHacked]

Hacking Democracy is a video you need to see then. You can watch in on Google Videos or Youtube. Shows all about the flaws of electronic voting, and how easy one can rig an election. If anyone recalls the fiasco that was the 2000 election and where it came down to the disgrace in Florida regarding some votes that were not even going to be counted, this video will open the eyes a little more.

http://video.google.ca/videosearch?q=hacking+democracy

Also anyone who understands technology in any way should right away discredit the electronic voting machines. You all know how Microsoft goes on about how secure the OS is right?? Patch after security patch after security patch. I am in no doubt that someone was able to 'hack' the machines and rig a vote easily.

[newbie]

Dude, you are truly a one trick pony. Your loathing for your own country is remarkable. I sincerely hope your attitudes are not an accurate representation of those of your culture and generation.

You may want to go back and read some of the rightwing comments on this forum when Martin was Prime Minister.

[blackascoal]

Dude, you are truly a one trick pony. Your loathing for your own country is remarkable. I sincerely hope your attitudes are not an accurate representation of those of your culture and generation.

"The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it always to be kept alive. "

"The will of the people is the only legitimate foundation of any government, and to protect its free expression should be our first object."

"Shake off all the fears of servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call on her tribunal for every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear."

Thomas Jefferson

If Jefferson lived today, people like you would think he was "unpatriotic", "unamerican", and hated his own country. That's because you don't understand the difference between a citizen and a subject. A citizen has a right and a duty to question his government .. and because American citizens understand that, the truth of the fraud of electronic voting has been exposed. Neither political party led this challenge, in fact, both stood in the way. American citizens, activists, and technology professionals, did the researcg, documentation, and exposure. Politicians were forced to follow along behind. I post this because I'm proud to have been one of those citizens. Subjects played no part in this effort. They simply did what they were told and thought what they were told to think .. as you seem to be implying is the "American" thing to do.

"My culture and generation" would be that of the 60's and my rebellion and resistance to FEAR is quite indicative of that time .. a resistance that brought about great social and political changes in America. If you look closely, you'll see a lot of the same elements desire for change in the American people today.

Keeping America true to it's values, principles, and greatness are the responsibility of citizens, not politicians nor corporations, nor scary people. Too bad you don't understand that.

My advice is that you could spend your time better sticking to issues, which I'll gladly debate you on, rather than trying to define me because I simply don't care. I appear to understand democracy a lot better than you do. Dissent against bad government is a critical component of any successful democracy, and democracy, like life, is dynamic, not static.

Now if you'd like to debate the merits of electronic voting and try to demonstrate that nothing is wrong with it, I can tell you up front that you will lose that argument .. badly. I'm a DBA, I know software, and I've worked on this issue for at least 6 years. Start with "software negative votes Leon County Florida" .. search on that.

get back to me.

[Catchme]

Guess the Republicans don't want the Democrats using there rigged electronic voting programs.