Submitted to the Eureka Reporter, 10/2/06.
Dear Editor:
Jerry Partain raises a good question:
Aren't we being taken for fools? (9/30/06). On August 25
this paper covered the results of a recent
Zogby poll showing 92% of Americans believe we have a right to know and see how our votes are counted. Why, then, does Humboldt County use optical scanners containing "interpreter code"? This type of computer programming obscures the public's view of the vote counting process by
scrambling all of our ballot information into Diebold's proprietary language called AccuBasic.
Isn't it foolish to put blind trust in Diebold's "interpretation" of the results, when the
CA Secretary of State, the
Government Accountability Office, and
independent computer scientists have all published reports explaining exactly how to hack the machines and change election results without leaving a trace of evidence?
Isn't it foolish for Humboldt County to do business with Diebold, a company that
employs felons convicted of computer fraud, makes
partisan donations and statements, and faces at least six
class action lawsuits filed by its own shareholders alleging fraud?
Isn't it foolish to aggregate precinct vote totals using the GEMS central tabulator program labeled as a
national security threat by the Department of Homeland Security?
Isn't it foolish for the media to report election results as fact without questioning or verifying the information provided by only one source - the very same government whose grip on power is at stake?
Isn't it foolish to believe that Democracy can coexist with secret vote counting?
Yes, as Partain says, we are being taken as fools. But worse, we are acting the part. Government (and media) legitimacy comes only from the
Consent of the Governed. Isn't it foolish for the 92% of us who know better to Consent to such election conditions?
We must
count the ballots by hand, the most transparent, secure, and verifiably accurate way
to conduct an election. Isn't it foolish to assign legitimacy to any government that prefers counting votes in secret?
No fooling - if this letter is published, an annotated version will appear at
http://WeDoNotConsent.blogspot.com with links to support every claim above.
Dave Berman
Eureka, CA
* * *
Note: I was called to confirm authorship and told this would be published sometime this week.
Permalink:
http://wedonotconsent.blogspot.com/2006/10/arent-we-being-taken-for-fools-ltte-of.html