The Computer Ate My Vote

[JackieO]

Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream fame will be dishing a little political activism with his ice cream tomorrow in Washington, D.C., when he calls on secretaries of state throughout the country to secure electronic voting machines.

The Computer Ate My Vote campaign, which raised $100,000 in its first two days of fundraising last week, aims to convince other states to follow the lead of California. In December, California mandated that e-vote machines used in the state must produce a voter-verified paper trail by July 2006. Shortly thereafter, Nevada and Washington state followed suit.

http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,62294,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_3

[JailForBush]

1. Let's put Bill Gates in charge of the computer voting! LOL N/T

[SaddenedDem]

2. Georgia is next!!!!!!

From: TrueMajority <[e-mail]>
Subject: Safeguard GA's Votes SEND ACTION
Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2004 01:52:01 -0500 (EST)

Computer Voting Glitches Imperil Georgia's Votes

California, Washington and Nevada Have Protected Their Voters
Tell Secretary of State Cathy Cox to Safeguard Yours as Well

Computer voting systems are coming, even though they are "not ready for prime time." The corporations that make them are keeping secret how the machines work, saying, "Trust us, nothing can go wrong." They don't even have a way to have a real recount should the machines crash or there be any other reason to think that something might have gone wrong. When Maryland election officials tested the machines, hackers were able to compromise the systems in a matter of minutes.

But this is a rare example of a serious problem that has a simple remedy. The machines can be opened up to election officials for monitoring, and each voter can check a printout of his or her vote to confirm that it was entered correctly. Then the paper version can be collected and be available for routine audits and recounts if necessary. This creates a voter-verified paper trail.

State election officials in California, Washington and Nevada have already used their own authority to protect their citizens by requiring that computer voting systems in their states provide the voter-verified paper trail. You deserve the same protection. Tell Secretary of State Cathy Cox to do the same for Georgia.

To send Secretary of State Cathy Cox a free message urging the same safeguards for Georgia voters, just click "reply" and "send" in your e-mail program (text below). If this was forwarded to you or you'd like to customize the message, click here: http://action.truemajority.org/ctt.asp?u=378632&l=316

**LETTERS TO THE EDITOR**
Letters to the editor are another powerful way to influence election officials. This feature uses state-of-the-art technology to make it really easy for you to send a letter to the editor. Click here to give it a try:
http://action.truemajority.org/ctt.asp?u=378632&l=317

About This Campaign:
TrueMajority members have urged passage of federal legislation requiring these simple remedies, but the Republican congressional leadership refuses even to grant the bills a hearing. So TrueMajority is rolling out a major campaign to make sure that state election officials protect their citizens from these machines. We asked our members to donate the money needed to run this campaign, and you've already given more than $100,000, twice what we asked for. We are using this money to mount an even-more-aggressive campaign to make sure these voting machines aren't installed around the country.

TrueMajority is announcing our national campaign "The Computer Ate My Vote" at a February 17 news conference during the annual convention of the National Association of Secretaries of State. TrueMajority members will then hold similar news events in our first ten target states during the week of February 23. As we win state by state, we'll be moving the campaign around the country until everyone is protected. So watch your e-mail box, and we'll let you know what else you can do.

But first, send Secretary of State Cathy Cox a free message right now. Just click "reply" and "send" in your e-mail program (text below). If this was forwarded to you or you'd like to customize the message, click here:
http://action.truemajority.org/ctt.asp?u=378632&l=316

Ben Cohen President, TrueMajority.org
PS: For more information about our campaign, check out www.truemajority.org/voting.cfm.
For more information about computer voting systems, check out
www.verifiedvoting.org or www.calvoter.org/votingtechnology.html#resources.

Here is the letter we'll send to Secretary of State Cathy Cox:

Dear Secretary of State Cathy Cox:

Touch-screen voting systems may have some benefits, but I urge you to use whatever authority you have administratively, or influence you have legislatively, to ensure that election hardware and software are controlled by public servant election officials and that a voter-verified paper trail is in place before any Georgia election uses touch screens.

The secretaries of state for California, Washington and Nevada have already used their own authority to protect their citizens by requiring that computer voting systems in their states provide the voter-verified paper trail. I deserve the same protection.

Sincerely,
(We'll put your name and address here.)

[dusty64]

10. Cool, its

really been beyond belief what these "election" officials have been up to. They don't even try to hide the fact that they are NOT working for the People.

[SaddenedDem]

13. Check THIS out! Prosituting the State Seal of Georgia

for Diebold.

http://www.diebold.com/dieboldes/testimonials.htm

One really has to wonder with Cathy Cox - is she bucking for Governor of Georgia or President of Diebold? She's certainly covering both bases, isn't she?

[Hell Hath No Fury]

3. Thanks for that JackieO!

:hi:

[mrdmk]

4. The real bitch about this is

The powers that be are waiting until 2006 to change the bbv to a bbv with a paper trail. This is something that could be done now, but no, we have to wait till 2006. I am very disappointed. HR 2239 will have this completed by the 2004 November election.

[Lori Price CLG]

5. 2006?!?

2006!?!
:scared:

Well, the *problem* is... the Bush Dictatorship is up for re-s-election in *2004*. If/when the Bush terrorists steal the election again, all bets for 2006 will be off. By 2006, the last vestiges of democracy will have vanished from America and we'll be so screwed by Patriot Acts I, II, III, IV, and V that the *light* from screwed would take ten billion years to reach the earth.

-Lori Price

[Bozita]

6. TrueMajority has prepared letters for every states' elections head

Here's a sample letter to the Michigan Secretary of State (chief elections official):

Here is the letter we'll send to Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land:

Dear Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land:

Touch-screen voting systems may have some benefits, but I urge you to use whatever authority you have administratively, or influence you have legislatively, to ensure that election hardware and software are controlled by public servant election officials and that a voter-verified paper trail is in place before any Michigan election uses touch screens.

The secretaries of state for California, Washington and Nevada have already used their own authority to protect their citizens by requiring that computer voting systems in their states provide the voter-verified paper trail. I deserve the same protection.

Sincerely,
(We'll put your name and address here.)


PS: For more information about our campaign, check out www.truemajority.org/voting.cfm <http://action.truemajority.org/ctt.asp?u=34795&l=320> .
For more information about computer voting systems, check out www.verifiedvoting.org <http://action.truemajority.org/ctt.asp?u=34795&l=322> or www.calvoter.org/votingtechnology.html#resources <http://action.truemajority.org/ctt.asp?u=34795&l=323> .

[fearnobush]

7. 2006 is a scam. BFEE only need 2004 after that, it's over.

We need at least a 6% to 10% margin of error to actually win this fall. Anything stolen over 10% is to obvious, and they know that. This is why they are going crazy, because Kerry's numbers are at or slightly above the steal votes get caught margin. A paper trail would actually hurt their vote stealing scams of the past. Voter felon purging can only squeeze 1 to 2% at the most. If we had a paper trail by 2004, it would be death for the GOP.

[AndyTiedye]

8. 10% isn't *nearly* enough

They stole up to 16% in the Georgia 2002 Senatorial elections,
and the talking hedz blamed it on "angry white men", who somehow
didn't show up in any of the pre-election polls.
They had to bury their own exit polls, of course, blaming "bad data",
again. They will have to steal a bit more than that in 2004, which is
why the need both "angry white homophobes" on the right, and
"Nader voters" on the left to make it look believable.
They get an extra 7% just from the existance of the Electoral College,
and they have a demonstrated ability to steal at least 16%,
so we really to be up almost 25% to win.

What we need is a historic landslide.

[leftchick]

9. Well This is Good News.....

Time is indeed running out. We all need to take action...

:bounce:

[pinniped]

11. Get a load of this...

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2004/02/16/MNGJU51LKS1.DTL

Snip -

"Optical scanner systems, such as the one San Francisco uses, work better, Dill said. As for the touch-screen systems, he said voters should at least get a printed receipt to show their votes were recorded accurately and to allow subsequent auditing by elections officials.

He was debated on that score, however, by another expert, Ted Selker of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. During a sometimes testy briefing for reporters, Selker said that voter verifiable paper trails just add a new source of potential confusion and election fraud."

- Snip

Ya, we wouldn't want any election fraud.:eyes:

Please explain "confusion".

[DoYouEverWonder]

12. I just posted a rant over in GD about Florida's Sec. of State

who was on NPR this morning spewing her bullshit.

She claims that the magical machines to print out ballots haven't even been manufactured yet, no less certified. So it is impossible to provide the citizens with a paper print out in the next election. Ah excuse me, she's never heard of Epson or HP? Give me a break. Do they really think we are that stupid? Never mind, I already know the answer.

Glenda Hood (Fl Sec of State) is a moran

[many a good man]

14. Press Conference a resounding success!

I just returned from the event and it was very well-attended by TrueMajority members and the Press. Ben spoke along with a computer security expert who exposed the incompetence of Diebold engineers. The secretaries of state from Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine also spoke.

They plan press events in 10 other states in the coming months. Everyone expressed outrage at the lack of Congressional underfunding and failure to mandate voter verified paper audit trails. Ben is a great guy to speak out on this issue. Hopefully it will pick the public discourse...