20 Amazing Facts About Voting in the USA

Tohpol · Feb 5, 2008

1. 80% of all votes in America are counted by only two companies:
Diebold and ES&S.

http://www.onlinejournal.com/evoting/042804Landes/042804landes.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diebold

2. There is no federal agency with regulatory authority or oversight of
the U.S. voting machine industry.

http://www.commondreams.org/views02/0916-04.htm
http://www.onlinejournal.com/evoting/042804Landes/042804landes.html

3. The vice-president of Diebold and the president of ES&S are brothers.

http://www.americanfreepress.net/html/private_company.html
http://www.onlinejournal.com/evoting/042804Landes/042804landes.html

4. The chairman and CEO of Diebold is a major Bush campaign
organizer and donor who wrote in 2003 that he was "committed
to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year."

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/07/28/sunday/main632436.shtml
http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1647886

5. Republican Senator Chuck Hagel used to be chairman of ES&S.
He became Senator based on votes counted by ES&S machines.

http://www.motherjones.com/commentary/columns/2004/03/03_200.html
http://www.onlinejournal.com/evoting/031004Fitrakis/031004fitrakis.html

6. Republican Senator Chuck Hagel, long-connected with the Bush family,
was recently caught lying about his ownership of ES&S by the Senate
Ethics Committee.

http://www.blackboxvoting.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=26
http://www.hillnews.com/news/012903/hagel.aspx
http://www.onlisareinsradar.com/archives/000896.php

7. Senator Chuck Hagel was on a short list of George W. Bush's vice-presidential candidates.

http://www.businessweek.com/2000/00_28/b3689130.htm
http://theindependent.com/stories/052700/new_hagel27.html

8. ES&S is the largest voting machine manufacturer in the U.S.
and counts almost 60% of all U.S. votes.

http://www.essvote.com/HTML/about/about.html
http://www.onlinejournal.com/evoting/042804Landes/042804landes.html

9. Diebold's new touch screen voting machines have no paper trail of any
votes. In other words, there is no way to verify that the data coming
out of the machine is the same as what was legitimately put in by voters.

http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0225-05.htm
http://www.itworld.com/Tech/2987/041020evotestates/pfindex.html

10. Diebold also makes ATMs, checkout scanners, and ticket machines,
all of which log each transaction and can generate a paper trail.

http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0225-05.htm
http://www.diebold.com/solutions/default.htm

11. Diebold is based in Ohio.
http://www.diebold.com/aboutus/ataglance/default.htm

12. Diebold employed 5 convicted felons as consultants and developers to
help write the central compiler computer code that counted 50% of the
votes in 30 states.

http://www.wired.com/news/evote/0,2645,61640,00.html
http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2004/10/301469.shtml

13. Jeff Dean was Senior Vice-President of Global Election Systems
when it was bought by Diebold. Even though he had been convicted of
23 counts of felony theft in the first degree, Jeff Dean was retained as
a consultant by Diebold and was largely responsible for programming
the optical scanning software now used in most of the United States.

http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0312/S00191.htm
http://www.chuckherrin.com/HackthevoteFAQ.htm#how
http://www.blackboxvoting.org/bbv_chapter-8.pdf

14. Diebold consultant Jeff Dean was convicted of planting back doors in
his software and using a "high degree of sophistication" to evade detection
over a period of 2 years.

http://www.chuckherrin.com/HackthevoteFAQ.htm#how
http://www.blackboxvoting.org/bbv_chapter-8.pdf

15. None of the international election observers were allowed in the polls
in Ohio.

http://www.globalexchange.org/update/press/2638.html
http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2004/10/26/loc_elexoh.html

16. California banned the use of Diebold machines because the
security was so bad. Despite Diebold's claims that the audit logs
could not be hacked, a chimpanzee was able to do it!

(See the movie here: http://www.bbvdocs.org/videos/baxterVPR.mov.)
http://wired.com/news/evote/0,2645,63298,00.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4874190

17. 30% of all U.S. votes are carried out on unverifiable touch screen
voting machines with no paper trail.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/07/28/sunday/main632436.shtml

18. All -- not some -- but all the voting machine errors detected and
reported in Florida went in favor of Bush or Republican candidates.

http://www.wired.com/news/evote/0,2645,65757,00.html
http://www.yuricareport.com/ElectionAftermath04/ThreeResearchStudiesBushIsOut.htm
http://www.rise4news.net/extravotes.html
http://www.ilcaonline.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=950
http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/HL0411/S00227.htm

19. The governor of the state of Florida, Jeb Bush, is the President's brother.

http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/news/local/7628725.htm
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10544-2004Oct29.html

20. Serious voting anomalies in Florida -- again always favoring Bush -- have been mathematically demonstrated and experts are recommending further investigation.

http://www.yuricareport.com/ElectionAftermath04/ThreeResearchStudiesBushIsOut.htm
http://www.computerworld.com/governmenttopics/government/policy/story/0,10801,97614,00.html
http://www.americanfreepress.net/html/tens_of_thousands.html
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/1106-30.htm
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2004/110904.html
http://uscountvotes.org/
Taken from Nightweed.com
________________________________________

And nothing much has changed. If anything it's got worse. Remember, in reality there is no "Republican" or "Democrat" on the issues that count and that would really save America. It's effectively a one party system. Depressing I know, but acknowledging it is the first step for REAL change. More on the voting machines here.

I Ching question:

Will any of the candidates offer a fundamental change for the better?

8.2.3 > 48

Wilhelm: 2: "If a person responds perseveringly and in the right way to the behests from
above that summon him to action, his relations with others are intrinsic and
he does not lose himself. But if a man seeks association with others as if he
were an obsequious office hunter, he throws himself away. He does not
follow the path of the superior man, who never loses his dignity."

Crisp: "2.Give sincere support or non at all. If you support for your own selfish ends alone, you may hit the target, but you miss the central point."

Wilhelm: 3. "We are often among people who do not belong to our own sphere. In that
case we must beware of being drawn into false intimacy through force of
habit. Needless to say, this would have evil consequences. Maintaining
sociability without intimacy is the only right attitude toward people, because
otherwise we should not be free to enter into relationship with people of our
own kind later on."

Crisp: 3."Be careful of who you associate with. There is a possibility of joining with the wrong company, leading to misfortune and commitment to those not of like mind."

[this post was inspired by a reading from here]

Topal

jesed · Feb 6, 2008

topal said:
1. 80% of all votes in America are counted by only two companies:
Diebold and ES&S.

Amazing Fact 21
Those 80% of votes are only votes in United States of America.
The rest of America, including Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, have several ways to count their votes. Most of them (amazing fact 22?) are counted by public institutions and not private companies

(I couldn't resist the oportunity to reivindicate the name America to the entire continent, and not only for one of it's countries. If anyone feels injuried, I apologize)

Tohpol · Feb 6, 2008

jesed said:
Amazing Fact 21
Those 80% of votes are only votes in United States of America.
The rest of America, including Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, have several ways to count their votes. Most of them (amazing fact 22?) are counted by public institutions and not private companies

(I couldn't resist the oportunity to reivindicate the name America to the entire continent, and not only for one of it's countries. If anyone feels injuried, I apologize)

True. Unfortunately, the only "votes" that really count in terms of political influence reside within the USA.

Topal

jesed · Feb 6, 2008

Topal

My comment wasn't about elections in United States. But about the use in United States of the name America applied to one of it's countries.

So, when I was talking about Canada, Mexico..etc; i wasn't talking of cytizens of United States voting for United States elections in other countries.

I was talking about mexicans voting for mexican election in Mexico; and brazilians voting for brazilian elections in Brazil and so on.

All those votes are also "votes in America".

Best

Tohpol · Feb 7, 2008

jesed said:
Topal

My comment wasn't about elections in United States. But about the use in United States of the name America applied to one of it's countries.
All those votes are also "votes in America".

Yes, I understood your comment Jesed. I was merely adding another comment of my own.

Topal

jesed · Feb 7, 2008

"Unfortunately, the only "votes" that really count in terms of political influence reside within the USA."
Then, you believe that it is political irrelevant to vote in Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela..etc.

If this is right, why the Unisted States of America's administrations spend so much money to influence in those electoral process?

Best

Tohpol · Feb 7, 2008

jesed said:
"Unfortunately, the only "votes" that really count in terms of political influence reside within the USA."
Then, you believe that it is political irrelevant to vote in Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela..etc.

If this is right, why the Unisted States of America's administrations spend so much money to influence in those electoral process?

Best

That means absolutely nothing. Billions of dollars are routinely wasted every year on various activities whether it be "elections" buying off Congress, bribes, black operations and money laundering etc. The US election is bought and paid for - that doesn't stop billions of dollars being thrown around to keep the illusion afloat.

I think it is also largely irrelevant when you look at the power of the World Bank and the IMF which are effectively tools for USA dominance. They have caused catastrophic social problems - all by design (structural adjustment to name but one). That said, look at Chavez. He has done more to stop the American Union than any other leader and is a particular thorn in the side of the CIA who, historically have dominated the destiny of the Americas as a whole. If such elections cannot be "managed" as is normally the case, then other means are eventually used to enforce their will.

Enormous amounts of money can be spent on the electoral process at various administrative levels both in the USA and in the various countries in South America and it has little relevance to the overall agenda. The gradual disempowerment of the Americas via the Free Trade Area of the Americas(FTAA) is still the reality.

"America" as you define it, is still dominated by the central nexus in Washington whichever way you look at it. Imo, people have to stop giving faith to traditional systems which have long since been corrupted.

Topal

Sparhawk · Feb 8, 2008

Ahem..., you two realize being on the same side, right?

I must say that I understand Jesed completely when he complains that the USA seems to have appropriated the name of "America" all for itself. America, the continent, usually divided in three regional sections, is a big chunk of land, with many different countries, of which the USA occupies only a portion. The bad thing is that, historically and politically, successive US governments have treated the border-enclosed USA as the "House of America" while the rest of the continent was seen as the "backyard," "outhouses" and worst. Given a century of this type of treatment, people in the rest of the continent have, naturally, become resentful and distrustful of the neighbor upstairs.

Tohpol · Feb 8, 2008

sparhawk said:
Ahem..., you two realize being on the same side, right?

I must say that I understand Jesed completely when he complains that the USA seems to have appropriated the name of "America" all for itself. America, the continent, usually divided in three regional sections, is a big chunk of land, with many different countries, of which the USA occupies only a portion. The bad thing is that, historically and politically, successive US governments have treated the border-enclosed USA as the "House of America" while the rest of the continent was seen as the "backyard," "outhouses" and worst. Given a century of this type of treatment, people in the rest of the continent have, naturally, become resentful and distrustful of the neighbor upstairs.

Well I do feel like I'm boxing my own shadow a bit....

Yes, I agree. And their "neighbour upstairs" needs to begin to be actively resisted in much greater numbers. That of course, is difficult when you are trying to put food on the table for your family and your social infrastructure has been eroded away over many decades.

I hope to finally visit "south America" the beginning of next year. I'm really looking forward to it.

Topal

hollis · Feb 16, 2008

Duh-merica

Hi Topal,

Looks like the 'neighbor upstairs' shenanigans begin:

Unofficial Tallies in City Understated Obama Vote
By SAM ROBERTS

Black voters are heavily represented in the 94th Election District in Harlem’s 70th Assembly District. Yet according to the unofficial results from the New York Democratic primary last week, not a single vote in the district was cast for Senator Barack Obama.

That anomaly was not unique. In fact, a review by The New York Times of the unofficial results reported on primary night found about 80 election districts among the city’s 6,106 where Mr. Obama supposedly did not receive even one vote, including cases where he ran a respectable race in a nearby district.

City election officials this week said that their formal review of the results, which will not be completed for weeks, had confirmed some major discrepancies between the vote totals reported publicly — and unofficially — on primary night and the actual tally on hundreds of voting machines across the city.

In the Harlem district, for instance, where the primary night returns suggested a 141 to 0 sweep by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, the vote now stands at 261 to 136. In an even more heavily black district in Brooklyn — where the vote on primary night was recorded as 118 to 0 for Mrs. Clinton — she now barely leads, 118 to 116.

From the NY Times.

errrr. did I say I was sleeping till this was over?????

gene · Feb 25, 2008

It is good that some people understand what is going on in the U.S. The last two elections were stolen, and that will likely continue with the new voting machines. It is imperative that people understand this. There are always, and always have been a group of people that care not one wit for human rights, but only their own aggrandizement, and glorification. This is a prison planet, run by prisoners. It has well been said, the best kind of slave is one who does not know he/she is a slave. Why would they rebel if they thought everything was all right. Even people who are involved in the destruction of democracy, to a certain extent, think everything is as it should be, not realizing that they too are slaves.

Over thirty years ago, I read a book, I believe it was called "The five O'clock Bus," that said that the last democratically elected president in the United States would be elected in 1996. In 2000, George Bush stole the election, as well as in 2004. The book was pretty accurate on everything. Of course we have spending on campaigns. They want to be elected, but they can't be unless they have the endorsement of the elite. Add on top of this that both the Bush and the Clinton administration, and I believe even previous administrations, have created numerous laws and executive orders allowing for Martial Law under almost any conceived excuse. (You don't think so? Google it.) That means that the 2008 elections, or any in the future, could be, at the whim of the current administration, suspended, martial law be declared, and we would have a dictator in the white house. (We nearly have that now.) I am not saying this is going to happen, but it could. The laws are in place.

Gene

Tohpol · Feb 25, 2008

gene said:
That means that the 2008 elections, or any in the future, could be, at the whim of the current administration, suspended, martial law be declared, and we would have a dictator in the white house. (We nearly have that now.) I am not saying this is going to happen, but it could. The laws are in place.

Gene, what do you mean "we nearly have that now"?

The problem is when one mentions "dictator" folks think of Stalin or Mussolini, Hitler or Franco. Fascism is much much more sophisticated now (even if a monkey is it's figurehead) It generally wears tailored suits instead of jack-boots but it's a direct descendant.

Bush, and Presidents before him have been ignoring Congress, buying them off blackmailing etc. for quite some time now.

A few links for those not already yawning:

"George W. Bush's speech on September 6 amounted to a public confession to criminal violations of the 1996 War Crimes Act. He implicitly admitted authorizing disappearances, extrajudicial imprisonment, torture, transporting prisoners between countries and denying the International Committee of the Red Cross access to prisoners."

Bush Admitting to an Impeachable offense on National T.V.

"A few days ago, Bush signed a new executive order in which he uses broad language to claim that he has the power to seize the property of any person who undermines efforts to promote economic reconstruction and political reform in Iraq. The language in the executive order is broadly defined and does not specifically identify a specific group of individuals that the order applies to. It opens up the possibility of anti-war protesters and other political dissidents having their property confiscated for simply speaking out against the war."

In other words - the trashing of the 5th amendment: White House Press Release

"President Bush has quietly claimed the authority to disobey more than 750 laws enacted since he took office, asserting that he has the power to set aside any statute passed by Congress when it conflicts with his interpretation of the Constitution."

That's officially a dictator folks. And those executive laws are primed and ready for the next President to apply should the next "terrorist" attack be ushered in.

"Always look on the bright side of life..." (whistle)

Topal

gene · Feb 26, 2008

You said it better than I can, Topal. Thanks for this info.

Gene

gene · Feb 26, 2008

I just heard this news. Haven't verified it, but it sounds real...

The United States administration and the Canadian administration have signed a joint agreement to allow troops from each country to respond to any kind of emergency in either country. Any kind of disturbance at all. It is no longer Canadian troops or U.S. troops, it is North American troops. These laws were passed without consulting congress, just up and passed by the President alone.

I am sure this will sound in no way ominous to many of you, but... think about it!

Gene

Tohpol · Feb 28, 2008

gene said:
I just heard this news. Haven't verified it, but it sounds real...

The United States administration and the Canadian administration have signed a joint agreement to allow troops from each country to respond to any kind of emergency in either country. Any kind of disturbance at all. It is no longer Canadian troops or U.S. troops, it is North American troops. These laws were passed without consulting congress, just up and passed by the President alone.

The military merger has been ratified all right. See HERE

Topal

gene · Feb 29, 2008

At dawn we slept.

Gene

Trojina · Feb 29, 2008

Sparhawk · Feb 29, 2008

Methinks Gene refers to the Pearl Harbor attack and how some conspiracy theories call for that to have been allowed to happen as an excuse to get the US into WWII, as a metaphor for what's happening now...

Trojina · Feb 29, 2008

Ah ! I do seem to need things explaining alot lately, lol, I must be getting dimmer

gene · Mar 2, 2008

Yes, there was a book by that title. "At Dawn We Slept," regarding the attack on Pearl Harbor. The same is happening today, but on a much much more subtle level. However, anyone who pays attention to even mainline news sources can figure out, things aren't right. I have many, many sources, and they always end up verified. And people are going to find out, in a year or two now, if not before, that they really, really are not right. When the Blue Helmets patrol the streets, (and they are already here, on a low level). This is no joke, but many of you will still take it that way. No matter, the wool is in the dye, now.

Gene

20 Amazing Facts About Voting in the USA

Supporter

jesed

Guest

Supporter

jesed

Guest

Supporter

jesed

Guest

Supporter

One of those men your mother warned you about...

Supporter

Supporter

visitor

Supporter

visitor

visitor

Supporter

visitor

Supporter

One of those men your mother warned you about...

Supporter

visitor