Nov. 17 2005

     Why isn’t everyone demanding that electronic voting be outlawed? Don’t people see, don’t they know, that computers can be manipulated to do almost anything, through cleverly designed programs?
     Forget the “voter fraud”, such as a vote cast by Mickey Mouse, for example, or a vote illegally cast by a felon. Sure, those things happen too, and we want them stopped, but to pursue those issues with a great hue and cry is only to cast up a big smokescreen over the real danger. And quit worrying about “hackers” getting into the voting machines from the outside. Sure, it might be possible, but the damage they could inflict is minimal next to the danger of basically corrupted programs, right from the manufacturer.
There has been some awareness of the possibility of manufacturers’ fraud through computer voting, but no one seems to spit out the whole problem, and the “fixes” offered are woefully inadequate---Just enough to placate the complainers, it appears.

Here’s what’s wrong:

1. Voting programs are manufactured and sold by several large companies. These programs are protected by law from public view, as “proprietary” information—they are “trade secrets”. Therefore no one, not even the buyer, can view them and have them analyzed for fraud or flaws or bugs.
   
2. These programs can easily be designed to create two or more different versions of a vote tally. One can be exactly what the voters entered. Another can be instructed to redirect one vote out of 10, or 100, or 1000 (or whatever the Numbers Guys in the Big Think Tank felt would create a safe margin for their favored candidate, but not so big as to arouse real suspicion) to another candidate of their own choice.
   
3. A paper trail won’t help, because the computer can be directed to print out the correct tally on paper, without changing the corrupted tally inside the computer. In that case, the voter, after voting, would view his paper record, see that it was correct, and go away satisfied. A recount would never be demanded, because no one complained, so the paper trail would go forever uncounted.
   
4. There is another problem with the paper trail: If it did print exactly what the corrupted computer tally recorded, the voter would see that it was wrong, and would have to go to the election officials to complain. Whoops! Guess what—now we’ve lost our Secret Ballot!
   
5. The real problem is the electronic program, and our inability to check it out. So now let’s suppose that laws protecting proprietary information, at least pertaining to voting programs supplied to governmental units, are rescinded. Now we can explore the program. Or can we? Here’s what’s wrong:
   
   a. It wouldn’t be enough to view just one sample, because during manufacture (much of which is also done by computer nowadays), the process can be directed to create one corrupted program in every 10, or 100, or 1000 (or whatever the Numbers Guys in the Big Think Tank felt would create a safe margin for their favored candidate, but not so big as to arouse real suspicion).
   b. So now we’ve got to check out every program in every computer in every precinct in every county in every state in the nation in order to determine what is really going on? Well, obviously that is not financially feasible. Anyone who has had to have their home computer checked out to solve some simple problem knows what those guys charge per hour. And our local computer guys wouldn’t be enough. Anyone creating a corrupted voting program to deceive an entire nation would know they would be in Mighty Big Trouble if it was discovered. So they would create “bugs” that are very hard, or nearly impossible, to detect. It would take an army of computer geniuses to do this job, and I find it impossible to imagine what this might cost. The nation couldn’t afford it, that’s for sure, especially with the enormous deficit we’ve already got, and besides, it might take at least until the 2016 election or so to complete the work.
   c. The Elections Board may intend to run exhaustive tests of the system prior to an actual election use. But what if the program is designed to run its corrupted version only on a specific date, such as Election Day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and then delete itself? It can be done.
   
   

     IN CONCLUSION: I’m not alleging that the programs for the 2000 and 2004 elections were corrupted, because I can’t prove it, and in fact, no one can, under present laws. But I am saying that it is perfectly possible, then or in the future. We need paper ballots. It’s the only reliable way to go. I have heard that computer voting has already been outlawed in two states. Why isn’t Wisconsin doing something about it? Because Wisconsin has a paper trail? Oh, yeah, big deal.
     At this very moment, more and more counties are meeting with program salespeople to purchase computers for the next election, with the “help” of the Help America Vote Act.
     The time to speak up is NOW, and LOUDLY. Write your representatives! Make some demands. This is still the America we knew, isn’t it?