BBV question: Will Bev Harris and other experts be at Dem convention?

[cybildisobedience]

Just started thinking about BBV being an issue at the Dem convention.....
We know it should be, and if some well-informed delegates can help MAKE it an issue at platform meetings, etc., there should be some experts around to educate the party leaders who seem to be a combination of both clueless and disinterested on this topic.
Bev, you out there?
Any other experts or academics planning on being around or accessible?
Ideally, we should come out of Boston with a clear-cut party position on this issue.

[RedEagle]

1. Good Question

Bev is "on assignment" right now although she could ring in here at any time.

I know people in both parties who are working at the local level in my area to get voter verified paper ballot and auditing into the platforms. This has to start from the local level and my hunch is that more of that is going on then we hear about.

That said, yes, it is high time that the party leaders began a demand for paper in 2004, put a hold on the HAVA Act or repealed the thing altogether, and began an investigation into just who and what has been fueling this lemming run off the cliff where voting systems are concerned.

But nothing will happen if people don't stay focused and unrelentless on this topic. There are many things in the headlines right now that take attention away from this core democratic issue. As concerned and dismayed as we are about those things, we cannot change them until we get control back in the hands of the people through our lawful process- voting.

Paperless machines are being sold as fast as they can and some areas of the country still appear clueless. My first suggestion would be to copy off "Myth Breakers" from votersunite.org and get it in the hands of your local election officials- AND the city or county goverment officials who will have to approve the expenditures for the equipment, and do that ASAP. BBV.org cannot begin to undertake that action, but people here on this board can.

It works. Pressure at the local level has made my county sit back and say they will not consider voting machines until 2005. They want to wait and see what works. At a recent meeting, they admitted that last year they thought maybe we were being a little too concerned about the issue. Now, they admit we were right and one person went so far as to express their opinion that the 2004 election was going to be a disaster.

But our county is only one of a few who seem to be wary of the whole thing, while others jump right into the paperless pit. It depends a lot on the PEOPLE in the county taking action. The sure way to get their attention is to begin revealing the problems and the cost of these systems. Money talks and spending money on a headache is no way to get elected next time around.

Keep working it folks. Call D.C. and ask for Senate sponsorship of S. 1980, (NOT the Clinton sponsored bill, which has a huge loophole, just like her last one) a halt of dispersion of money from HAVA, an extension of the HAVA deadlines, and an investigation into The Election Center and the evoting companies that, as we know now, contribute to it- you know, the same entitiy responsible for their certification,.....

[cybildisobedience]

2. thanks for responding....

since you seem fairlywell-connected to the whole BBV scene:
do you think we could use DU as a vehicle for putting together a convention contingent?
My fear is that even if we succeed in making the party officials aware, there won't be enough experts on hand to offer substantive insight and information AT THE CONVENTION.
Then it will tabled, then forgotten, then ignored.....
Before you know it, here we are back in Nov., talking about a stolen election.

[RedEagle]

4. Convention Contingent

Perhaps that would work. I'd see who might be interested, has experience at conventions, and can afford the price to attend. Unless you're in the party and part of the delegation, I would venture that monies will come out of your own pockets.

Then you have to pick the best spokespersons you can find.

You will have to figure out how to do this, if you want to. I can't attend a convention, I'm an Independent, graciously allowed to post on this board, and I certainly agree that honest, clean voting is the #1 issue in our country because that influences everything else. But I'm not going to get to attend a convention. I work with non-partisan groups on this issue, groups including Republicans and Libertarians, and we have these parties, at least locally, submitting platforms that include voter verified paper ballots and auditing. I encourage anyone in the parties to take up your suggestion and go for it.

[BevHarris]

3. No one really knows where I'll show up.

That being said, I'm not really an activist -- that is miscasting what I do. I am an investigative writer, and as such, am going to places where I can unearth new information about our voting system.