Voting in Florida 2002 -or- 2 years no better
 

I went to vote in the Primary this morning. This is the first election since the debacle.

We now have Scan-Tron style forms. We used to have those infamous punch cards with the dangling chadifiers. You are given a form and a manila folder for privacy. You walk over to your voting hutch and there is a Sharpie. You bubble in your selection with the Sharpie, place your ballot in the security folder and proceed to the vote counting machine. At the vote counting machine you hand your security folder to the election worker and put your card in the machine.

That's the narrative, here's what's worse than the old way...

Many of the volunteers are elderly. Some quite so. The nice woman that took my voter registration card started to initial on the line next to my wife's name, not mine. She had to hold my voter regostration card up to her eyes like Mr. Magoo. She actually got half of her initials on my wife's line. And she never asked me to sign, which I forgot I was supposed to do as well. Hell, I only vote every two years. When I asked her if my wife would be OK voting at lunchtime with her initials there her response was "Don't worry I'll be here." Umkaaaaaay.

Behind me a very elderly gentleman came in to vote. I know he was 1. Cuban 2. recently became a citizen and 3. completely deaf. I know this because he said so. I was pleased that he went through the citizenship process and was exercising his right to vote. But he had to be helped in filling out the ballot. He did have a shakey hand as well. The old punch card way of voting would have been much easier for him. I doubt he could bubble very accurately.

So I finished filling out my ballot and went to put it into the scanner. 3 people were watching me like a hawk. Evidently they had just rebooted the voting machine. And the best part of all? I had to insert my card into the machine FACE UP. Admittedly this doesn't matter in practice since it's a two sided form and it could have had bubbles on the back. But it sure does wound the pretense of privacy.

I will go back after work to sign my name to make sure my vote counts.

I guess computer voting would be the best of the three, but the most expensive. I am sure the news tonight will be splattered with voting stories.

Ivan, Duval County, Jacksonville, Florida

Scary.................
 

In Switzerland - you go in - check your gun at the door - and they put the questions to you. You raise your hand if you want to vote for something.

Very easy - very provable - (photograph each vote).

It didn't get fixed because, despite that election, there is no real incentive to fix it.
 

In fact, I'm willing to bet that both parties have a vested interest in the voting system to be as easy to manipulate as possible. Call me a cynic.

did you happen to read Greg Palast's book "The Best Democracy Money Can Buy"?
 

It went into some detail on the Florida elections of 2k and I'd be interested in your opinion as a local...

I'm going to vote at lunchtime, down here we now have the touch-screen ATM-type machines. In fact,
 

when they tested these machines with the elderly, they entered their votes, but then stood there waiting for their cash to come out! :-D

The elderly have no cash thanks to prescription costs. :)

Don't worry - Microsoft is preparing software for the voting booth
 

Works on the touch screen technology. You simply touch the screen for the candidate of your choice.
The computer then asks:
"You have selected Mr. X for the position of . . ., Is this correct?" Yes
"Would you like to change your vote?" No
"Are you sure?" Yes
"This candidate is from the ??? Party. Is this correct?" Yes
"Would you like to change your vote?" No
"Your vote is about to be posted. Are their any changes?" No
A fatal exception has occured at 00967-b34-BR549,
your vote has been discarded.

Yes - but drug companies make 80% of their profit in the US market
 

Even though most are headquartered elsewhere - so thats a good thing.

Unless you're on a fixed income, then it's time to head for the border :-)

There is a new website that lets you buy your drugs in canada
 

for 1/2 the price.