In the run up to the November midterms, I have to ask the question: Why aren't we hearing more about the stealth inclusion of easily tampered with Diebold type voting machines around the nation?
First a few excerpts from http://www.blackboxvoting.org/ :
(TN) 8/10 - 10 CANDIDATES FILE LAWSUIT OVER MASSIVE ELECTION IRREGULARITIES IN SHELBY COUNTY - MEMPHIS TN: 8/25/2010 - This is the most brutal voter disenfranchisement and election tampering and case we have witnessed yet.
...
August 25, 2010
AUGUST CANDIDATES FORMALLY SUE DUE TO IMPROPRIETIES IN ELECTION
Ten countywide candidates in the August 5th election have formally filed an election contest in Shelby County Chancery Court requesting injunctive relief. The ten plaintiffs in the suit include certain non-partisan judicial candidates as well as certain Democratic nominees, all of whom competed in the County General Election earlier this month. Based on an inspection and investigation of the Shelby County Election Commission (SCEC) and of August 5th election records, the suit claims that the election process was incurably flawed to the extent that the citizens of Shelby County were denied a free and equal election as required by Article I of the Tennessee Constitution.
And:
But computers no longer count votes in Germany.
Harris told the DeLand audience that, in 2009, the Federal Constitutional Court of Germany ruled citizens must be able to verify election results, reliably, and without any specialized knowledge about voting machines.
Because that standard can't be achieved with electronic voting, Germany elected to revert to paper ballots. Germany joined Ireland, the Netherlands, India and even Nigeria — all of which have returned to paper ballots and hand counts.
In the United States, however, computerized elections are the norm. Paper ballots are scanned and the results tabulated by computers. Touch-screen computers that don't produce paper ballots are in use, and Internet voting is being discussed.
There is much more at the link above.
We can spend a lot of time and words discussing issues and candidates, as well as spending piles of money from private and corporate sources being used to "get out the vote" and push for one side or another in a debate. We have already done so. Yet how much does any of that actually matter in the long term if all that is needed to game a system is a short program that can be inserted into the tabulation systems to completely thwart the will of those who come out to cast their votes?
If we don't do something regarding the accountability of our elections, the elections themselves become nothing more than entertainment, circus shows for the masses. I urge anyone reading this to take the time to educate themselves on this issue and make an noise. We need to have accountability in the entire process before the elections rather than after them.
If we can't do this, we will undoubtedly see another fiasco like the 2000 and 2004 elections where signed tabulations were being trashed and results not reflecting the will of US, the voters. How many of us are comfortable with letting our right to vote be stolen? Again?
A few more links (Please do your own research as well; this is NOT an exhaustive list):
Voting Machines Can Be Hacked
http://www.wanttoknow.info/...
E-Voting Rights
http://www.eff.org/...
Step by Step Guide to Hacking Electronic Voting Machines
http://www.alternet.org/...
I do hope that this gets sufficient attention BEFORE the election to prevent the elections from being stolen. Again.