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Friday, July 28, 2006

What's Wrong With Diebold: A Video

Vote This 15 minute video provides one of the clearest explanations of why Diebold electronic voting machines are so unreliable and easily gamed. It's best to view it after downloading it to your computer so you can enlarge the viewing screen and see all the details. A recent article on OpEdNews, "The Diebold Bombshell," reveals the company has actually admitted to the severe security flaws in its machines. In fact, they've stated they created the back door entryway into the software on purpose, despite the security vulnerabilities created by doing so.

Of course, here in New Mexico we're supposed to be immune to the dangers of DRE voting machines because of the bill passed at the January Legislative Session that requires a switch to paper ballot voting systems statewide. Election reform activists are still hoping that all our counties will obtain and implement the new system in time for the November election. We've heard that Bernalillo County Clerk Mary Herrera is trying hard to have the new system up and running in the Albuquerque area by election day, but she's also admitted she's not sure that can be accomplished.

Let's hope the powers that be in this state work together to make sure we're all voting with the new system come November. Anything less would once again put the accuracy of election results in jeopardy. We can't afford to let that happen and we need to keep the pressure on at all levels. Every vote must be counted and every vote must be documented by a paper trail. Anything less is completely unacceptable given all we know about the serious security flaws discovered in the electronic machines. Without a paper trail, all electronic machines are suspect, not just those manufactured by Diebold.

As Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. says in his recent must-read interview on BradBlog,

... our electoral system is broken for three reasons, in three large respects: The first is our campaign finance system, which is a system of legalized bribery, and which has allowed corporations and the very rich to control the results of our electoral process. Number two is the failure of the American press and that is also a function and result of corporate control, as I showed in my book. Number three is the election system itself, which is broken. We've privatized it and allowed four large corporations to count our votes on machines that don't work.

We've got our work cut out for us on all three fronts.

July 28, 2006 at 10:18 AM in Current Affairs | Permalink

Comments

my students will find this most enlightening.

Posted by: Suzanne Prescott & NMPNS | Jul 28, 2006 1:00:25 PM

Oh good! Pass it on!

Posted by: barb | Jul 28, 2006 1:37:12 PM

EXCELENT NEWS ARTICLE REGARDING A HUGE IMPORTANT ISSUE!

Mary Herrera is working diligently to meet the goals.

We need to APPLY MAXIMUM PRESSURE upon current Secretary of State, Rebecca Vigil-Giron. It is she who the Election Bureau currently answers to...

Accountability is a MUST!

Posted by: Edge | Jul 29, 2006 6:50:11 AM

I am especially glad to read from Edge that Mary Hererra is working to have the paper ballot system in Bernalillo County. I had sent her an e-mail asking why the Governor's office was concerned that she was not committed to implementation. She responded to me that she was working hard to have it ready in time for the November election.

We need to be ready to help in any way that we can to help this happen. We may be invited to run a mock election or something. We will need a lot of people for this. Please keep in touch so we can help our county clerk to provide us the safest and best election ever!

Terry Riley

Posted by: Terry Riley | Jul 31, 2006 10:00:49 AM

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