Sludge: Smartcards go missing in Tennessee

[maxrandb]

Control the Voting Machines.

and so it begins...

I won't post a link to that dreadful site, but

"The location at the center of the controversy is Bishop Byrne High School on E. Shelby Drive in Memphis.

The polling place started out with 25 cards. By Wednesday, 11 were missing, says an eyewitness. The location was given 5 more smartcards on Thursday. And another card went missing! As of Friday morning, a total of 12 smartcards had gone missing, out of the 30 give to the location.

Someone possessing a smartcard could use 'off the shelf equipment' and alter it to be used multiple times, and cast multiple votes. One concerned insider explains: "Shelby County Board of Elections has been notified. They said is was 'not a big deal' because, they said, the cards are deactivated. But the reality is, you can buy the equipment at computer stores to reactivate them. It's on the Internet how to reactivate the cards!"

[originalpckelly]

1. The only real problem with electronic voting machines...

is the uncertainty of results.

Even if there is no fraud, if people have lost enough confidence in our system to trust its results, the damage is done.

I don't blame them for this, because who in the world wouldn't be worried the other side had gained power through fraudulent results?

It totally makes sense that someone would say that when they have lost, because if there is a chance of fraud and a defeat of the will of the people, it is an invalid election.

You can't blame them for what is happening, not one bit at all.

I know we did it, and it isn't our fault either.

If you can't prove the system used to vote was error free in a lot of ways the election means nothing.



Elections ought to be so certain, that when someone loses they just accept it. There should be so little possibility of fraud, that no one would allege it. Then and only then can we have good elections. And no one is to blame whatsoever for being skeptical.

We might fault them for doing it when it looks like their party might lose, but they shouldn't have to think that, nor should we have in 2004, 2002, or 2000.

[spooked]

2. Well, then, They might want to switch to PAPER on Tuesday!

This is so outrageous! "If" the election is stolen in key states like Tennessee, they can just blame it on this theft of the Smartcards!