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Thank you for your response re HR 2239 Sen.
Udall/Staff.
I won't type out the whole anti-blackbox voting case
here, the problems are explicated broadly including
http://www.verifiedvoting.org
http://www.blackboxvoting.com
You may also be aware of Boulder's Citizens for
Verifiable Voting.
http://bcv.booyaka.com/
"Public involvement" as outlined in your response
below is simply no match for blackbox voting devices
with proprietary software and no hard copy paper
trail. Frankly, with the electorate more polarized
than at any time in history, with neocon
revolutionaries on one side, for whom fair &
legitimate elections are an obstacle to be overcome by
hook or crook as we saw in FL 2000 as well as in
recent midterm elections utilizing blackbox e-voting
machines which were plagued by "anomalies" which,
coincidentally or not, all favored republicans. The
present evidence predicting a Nov '04 e-voting
trainwreck is overwhelming, and the stakes are simply
too high for complacency and "trusting things will
work out okay".
Again, I strongly urge you to co-sponsor HR 2239. If
it means interim use of paper ballots through 11/04 to
ensure integrity while e-voting is rolled out
PROPERLY, this is a more affordable price than the
potential for trainwrecks of electoral integrity and 4
more illegitimate years of BushCo.
Thank You,
Tom Rategan, Boluder CO
--- ima_co02iq@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
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> November 19, 2003
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> Tom Rategan
> 2626 Juniper Ave, Apt 3
> Boulder, CO 80304
>
> Dear Tom:
>
> Thank you for letting me know of your concerns about
> the possible adverse effects of new technology used
> to record votes cast in federal elections. I
> appreciate your taking time to get in touch about
> this.
> Elections are administered by the states. However,
> as you know, the 2000 presidential election raised
> questions about voting technologies and whether the
> federal government should set standards and provide
> funding for improved systems. With the enactment in
> 2002 of the Help America Vote Act, voluntary
> guidelines, certification procedures, and federal
> requirements for voting systems have been
> established. The Act also provides funding through
> several programs to replace and improve current
> systems. I supported enactment of this law because
> it promises to reduce some of the problems seen in
> 2000.
> Of course, no technology is perfect, and any
> technology has some vulnerability to misuse. I
> think the best antidote to possible errors or fraud
> is public involvement. That can mean communicating
> with county clerks and others responsible for the
> conduct of elections, active participation in groups
> that work on this issue, and participation in such
> activities as monitoring polling places and the
> counting of ballots.
> I share your view that the integrity of the election
> process is at the heart of our democratic form of
> government. You can be sure I will continue to work
> to make sure it is maintained.
> Thanks again for contacting me. I see my job as
> being about more than supporting or opposing
> legislation. I also see it as a chance to try to
> bridge ideological divides and to bring people
> together to solve problems. So, I welcome your
> letters and e-mails and always listen closely to
> what you and other Coloradans have to say about the
> concerns of our communities and the issues facing
> our state and nation.
>
>
> Warm Regards,
>
> Rep. Mark Udall
> Member of Congress
>
> Thank you for contacting me using the Write Your
> Rep. Website at Http://www.house.gov/writerep.
>
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