This bill can be the biggest education on election integrity that the masses of American voters are going to get, and everything about the lesson drives home the primacy of paper. That message is the fundamental basis for the whole E I movement. PAPER doesn't break down. Paper is permanent. Paper cannot be stolen with the flick of an invisible switch.

::::::::

I'm surprised at the reluctance of some to endorse LAVA

(the "Let America Vote Act," aka "the Emergency Paper Ballot Act." Officially, it's the "Confidence in Voting Act of 2006," an amendment to HAVA.)

To review:

There will be massive breakdowns in DRE equipment.

That will disenfranchise voters unless there is a paper alternative in the polls.

Objection: Those paper ballots will be counted on scanners

Answer: They will be anyhow. Repeat: 95% of paper ballots will be counted on scanners, with or without a LAVA bill.

Would you rather the votes be counted on a permanent record that is available for recount -- or not cast at all?

THAT is the immediate question.

Objection: Isn't LAVA just another example of placebo voting like Holt paper trails?

Answer: NO it isn't -- for all the reasons that a paper ballot is different than a paper trail, (and the electronic ballot it may or may not represent).

We can educate from now on that op scans are not a suitable answer. But they are better than no vote at all. People will only get 1 chance to vote on Nov. 7 2006.

We KNOW there is going to massive deliberate disenfranchisement aimed at all classes of voters who oppose Unitary Executive government.

We need as many of their votes as possible.

Remember, the fewer votes that are cast, the easier it is to rig an election. Why? Fewer votes to have to switch. Switching leaves patterns analytics can pick up.

The easiest of all ways to rig an election is to prevent the opposition from voting at all. Trainwrecks accomplish that.

By far the majority of E I groups and individuals I know of are backing this bill.

There ought to be a very well stated rationale why not to.
I've thought about these questions as much as any of you, and I do not see any good reason to oppose this bill.

Yes, it's only temporary, and no, it doesn't REQUIRE providing paper ballots everywhere-- I wish it did.

This Midterm election is temporary too -- except that it will have HUGE consequences that remain the day after.

All along we have said we will fight for tactical victories that don't compromise our ultimate goals.

Advocating a paper ballot in the polls for anyone who wants one does not preclude us from simultaneously pursuing the longer-range solution of HCPB that we are pursuing anyhow.

There is no logical or principled contradiction involved.

Yes, we want all HCPB. No, that won't be possible this election.
Yes we want everyone who goes to vote, to have their vote counted.
Their vote CANNOT be counted if they CANNOT VOTE because of machine breakdowns, pollworker confusion, long lines, etc.

This bill can be the biggest education on election integrity that the masses of American voters are going to get,
and everything about the lesson drives home the primacy of paper.

That message is the fundamental basis for the whole E I movement.
PAPER doesn't break down.
Paper is permanent.
Paper cannot be stolen with the flick of an invisible switch.

Paper leaves an unambiguous record of the voter's intent (yes we know recounts are rare) but you can't possibly ever recount if there is no paper.

We do not have the publicity power to get across a lesson like this every day.
Now we have the NYT, broadcast television, and the backward mainstream liberal groups we so often complain about, all doing the heavy lifting for us.
(see True Majority ad below as an example)

We need to get out front on this and be counted in the affirmative.

Dan Ashby
Co-Founder, ElectionDefenseAlliance.org

Voting Machines Break. Paper Doesn't
Dear Margaret,

Click Here to Take Action

Congress is about to go home, but first tell them to protect the election by providing money for emergency paper ballots.

Paperless electronic voting machines will be used once again this fall, and already during the primaries they failed. In Maryland crowds of legal voters were turned away from the polls when the machines couldn't be started1.

There's a simple safeguard – have enough paper ballots on hand so the election can go forward even if the machines let us down again. Obvious, right? Senators Boxer (D-CA) and Dodd (D-CT) have introduced a last-minute bill which would provide money to any state that is willing to print up the paper ballots. It's cheap, it's easy, and there's no reason not to do it. But time is short.

Tell your Senator to support the emergency paper ballot bill.

TrueMajorityACTION started calling attention to the dangers of paperless electronic voting back in 2004 with our "Computer Ate My Vote" campaign. Many more states now require paper records of our votes, but still an alarming 40% of ballots will be cast on electronic voting machines this November2. Even Maryland's Republican Governor is now calling for a return to paper ballots3. We'll keep working with our partners in the movement to make sure all states eventually require a voter-verified paper record of every vote. In the meantime, though, the Boxer-Dodd plan is a good backup.

The election is in weeks, and Congress adjourns in days -- Send a message now and tell the Senate to protect our votes.

Then, forward this message on to your friends, so they can sign on too. Don't wait.

Matt Holland
TrueMajorityACTION Online Director

1 - The Sentinel

2 - New York Times, 26 September 2006

3 - New York Times, 24 September 2006

Here's the message we'll send your Senators (click here to edit the message):

I know there is a lot to do in the final days of the Congressional session, but I strongly urge you to work to support the Boxer-Dodd emergency legislation for paper ballots. I know that when the voting machines couldn't be started in Maryland earlier this month, voters were turned away from the polls.

That's the worst thing that can happen in a democratic election, and it's outrageous to let it happen simply because someone didn't print enough backup ballots. You're still in session for a few more days. Please put them to good use in protecting our votes with this common-sense solution.

Dan Ashby

E-mail: [email protected]

The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by which all other rights are protected.
To take away this right is to reduce a man to slavery. . . Thomas Paine

Authors Bio:
Dan Ashby is a co-founder of the Election Defense Alliance (ElectionDefenseAlliance.org)