Replies

Greg:

I'm not a computer geek so my response isn't going to be that tech savvy, yet it seems so basic to have some sort of backup even if the problem is something apolitical like a power surge or a befuddled granny who hits the "clear" button instead of the "send" button.

Every proposed method has their potential drawbacks and the primary one for the computer screen ballots is that there hasn't been that many opportunities to judge their worthiness and reliability. Yes, there have been some failures but were they operator errors or actual computer glitches? Perhaps the most distressing thought is that we may not know if the flaw is due to man, machine or both.

Until that time, a backup is needed and yet there are also issues such as the time a typical voter needs to cast a ballot, the right to a secret ballot and security checks to "back up" the backup.

As one other poster pointed out, the butterfly ballot was not the culprit during the 2000 election. Yet the media crush that followed forced legislatures to demand changes and the touchscreen ballot was presented as the panacea for the infamous butterfly. While the potential for fraud or fowl-ups exists with the new system, it also existed with all the old ones. Only foolproof people can insure a foolproof election. The job is to try to make it as as close to accurate as possible.

FWIW, I am more suspicious of the "vote by mail" scheme that has taken over Oregon and Washington, the same-day registration scams that are in a whole host of states, motor-voter and older forms of election hanky-panky. The touchscreens seem to be no less secure than all the previous forms of tamperable voting.

Still, I believe your cause is worthy and I'm inclined to send a letter to my own congressman (Lamar Smith) as well as Congressman Delay (why not Speaker Hastert or is Delay just the left's favorite boogeyman?) since he is also from Texas. I have no problem with seeing this bill reach the floor and receive an up or down vote. No commitment yet but I do think any action that reduces the potential for inaccurate or incomplete vote counts is a worthy goal.

Most of the more political points I would have made seem to have already been done by others so I'll leave that topic alone other than to say that until the "win at all costs" mentality is scrubbed from our two major parties, there will always be those who will try to beat whatever system is in place whether it be computers, papers or raised hands in a crowded room. Some people would rather cheat and win than accept a hard-fought defeat. Until that's eliminated, no system is entirely safe.