BLADAM - Entry - The benefits (?) of e-voting

DISCLAIMER: This is my personal blog. The blatherings here aren't (necessarily) the views of the current company I work for, companies I've previously blessed with my presence, my loving parents, the Illuminati, or anyone other than me, me, me!

The benefits (?) of e-voting

Nowadays, I see with increasing frequency stories about e-voting -- voting for regional or national elections via the Internet. The worries about fraud are stated clearly, emphatically, and meaningfully.

But where are the corresponding benefits?Quicker tabulation? Perhaps. And I guess that's considered important with today's MTV'd-attention-span folks.

Cost savings? After all the anti-hacking, equipment procurement and maintenance, and verification costs are added in? I don't see it.

Smaller margin of error? Nothing that couldn't be accomplished by more user-friendly paper ballots, IMHO.

Convenience? Those who are mobile-impaired (the handicapped or elderly, for instance) can already request absentee ballots and vote from the comfort of their own home. Heck, nearly ALL of us (at least in California) can actually do so; I've voted absentee for the last two years, saving the hassle of fighting the crowds and limited hours at my local polling place.

---

So am I missing something, or is e-voting actually a "solution" in search of a problem?

- Blathered by Adam on Saturday, July 26, 2003 at 16:16 [ Permalink | Trackback ]
- Filed under Society • Politics
- Commented on by 2 folks so far. Scroll down and see for yourself (and join in the conversation!)

Comment from
CrazyKate

[ BLADAM Profile | URL ]

Even though it would be quite a large cost up front, in the long run it’ll be cheaper & more accurate and quicker (and all that stuff) if they had touch screen type interfaces for voting. That way it could be automatically saved into a computer to determine the outcome.

I went to a Dance Fever event at a mall the other day (originally went to see friends to a west coast swing demo, but missed it ‘cause the stupid people rearranged the day, grr) & they had standalone touch screen surveys at the information table. They got your email address and different things you like about Dance Fever.

I dunno, just seemed cool to me & that it could be used in a lot more places to be more useful.

- Posted on Sunday, July 27, 2003 at 14:56 [ Permalink to this comment ]

Comment from
Bohemian Grove

[ BLADAM Profile | URL ]

I think that a combination of touch screen interfaces with secured robotic counting units will be the most efficient way to vote. You can put an unlimited amount of sensors inside the robot which monitor individually that the machine works perfectly. It’s gonna be a lot harder to change the way a physical machine works than to change a software, so I think that if it’s done correctly it will be more secure and cheaper.
קונספירציות

- Posted on Sunday, June 29, 2008 at 12:11 [ Permalink to this comment ]

Say something! If you're a member, log in first, though :-).

Name (Required)

Email (Optional)

Please include at least your first name or a nickname

Only I, Adam, will see this. It's not posted!

Location or affiliation (Optional)

URL (Optional)

e.g., Mannheim, Germany or Microsoft
or Seattle Savoy Club, etc.

Tags supported: <a href>, , , , , <strike>, , <pre>, <code>, and <blockquote>
Pop-up smiley chooser

I warmly welcome you to register and reserve your nickname.

While non-members are welcome to comment freely here, members get nifty benefits and more prominently displayed comments.

Signing up is free, super-fast and painless. No rude invasive questions or evil spam!

Remember my personal information (it'll be pre-filled for future comments here)
Send me an e-mail when others comment

IMPORTANT: Please type in the word adam below:
(This is to thwart automated spambots; sorry for the inconvenience)

A live preview of your comments will appear below as you type (including supported HTML but not showing graphical-smileys).

Next entry: Holy popularity, Batman!
Previous entry: Yet more music industry incompetence

FEEDS:	Full-text, all categories: (See a complete list of category-specific and other BLADAM feeds!)
CREDITS:	Site powered by ExpressionEngine. Cool menus by the Ultimate Dropdown Menu. Thoughtful advice and assistance from Ingmar, LisaJill, other awesome EE forum volunteers, and nice friends.
COPYRIGHT:	My sites are the result of many hours of hard work. Kindly ask before using my content. Thanks! :)
[ Return to the top of the page]