Voting Machine Company Tries to Blackmail Dutch Government

[kster]

by BaldEagle3
Wed Feb 28, 2007 at 01:54:31 PM PST

According to a Dutch grassroots group called "We don't trust voting computers", the head of the voting maching consortium Nedap/Groenendaal tried to blackmail the Dutch government in order to continue to cooperate in running its elections. Like many election offices in the US, the Dutch government needed the help of the voting machine company in order to hold an election.

The company owner even tried to force the Dutch government to buy its stock in order to cooperate, as documented by both the original Dutch email and its English translation.

Check out the full article HERE and prepare to be shocked.

Follow me below the jump for the sordid details and some choice quotes.

BaldEagle3's diary :: ::

The Freedom of Information Act--Dutch version--brought shocking correspondence to light between Jan Groenendaal's company and the Dutch government. (Nedap/Groenendaal is the Dutch consortium; its products marketed in the US as LibertyVote and LibertyControl.)

See the original article for links to all the references, but I'll quote a few interesting sections here:

The letters also show that Groenendaal was more or less blackmailing the Dutch government at the time of the previous parliamentary elections....Therefore, Groenendaal makes a very straightforward business proposal in the same e-mail, : "The ministry buys the shares of our company at a reasonable price, <...> and we will still cooperate during the next election (the Dutch 2007 provincial elections to be held March 7th).
Wow--buy shares of our company pronto, and we'll cooperate. Nice.

On November 22nd <2006> (the day of the national elections) he writes a letter (english translation) which doesn't spell blackmail as explicitly to minister Nicolaï in which he indicates his need to sell quickly because he would like to "acutely" retire. But when that letter fails to elicit a fast response, Groenendaal writes an alarming e-mail (Dutch) to the Electoral Council in which he says: "We are heading towards a very dangerous situation". Right in the heat of election preparation, he writes: "I have ordered my employees to halt all activity until we have received an answer that is acceptable to us", and asks the secretary-director of the Electoral Council to intervene on his behalf. As far as we know, the Dutch government never filed criminal charges in relation to this attempted extortion



http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/2/28/161117/088

[autorank]

1. You are the f'ing Walter Winchell of DU...you're hard wired to

the coolest stuff.

Dutch elections company tries to strong arm the government.

Amazing.

[kster]

2. THATS NOT ALL YOU GET! Its only 55 pounds, measuring 7” wide by, 24” inches tall by,

36” in length, the LIBERTYVOTE is a lightweight and compact solution for states seeking a 2002 NASED certified and ADA compliant DRE election solution.

The benefits of Liberty Election System’s LIBERTYVOTE machine include

(((((THE MACHINE GIVES THE VOTERS A COMPLETE ILLUSION THAT THEIR VOTES WERE ACTUALLY COUNTED, AND THEY GO HOME FEELING LIKE THEY LIVE IN A DEMOCRACY, ALL FOR THE LOW PRICE OF 10,000 DOLLARS, IT COMES WITH))))

Intelligent Design

The intelligent design of the LIBERTYVOTE, to the furthest extent possible, eliminates the possibility of voter error. Utilizing both audible and visual cues to alert voters in cases of under and over voting the LIBERTYVOTE allows voters, poll workers, and election officials to seamlessly transition to a state of the art DRE voting solution.
Compact and Lightweight

The size of a large suit case in storage configuration, the LIBERTYVOTE’s lightweight and compact design allow the machine to be efficiently stored and transported. Requiring only two poll workers, the setup process for the LIBERTYVOTE is as quick and as easy to complete as opening a briefcase.
Secure

The LIBERTYVOTE is a fully secure voting system. With quadruple redundant data storage, randomized ballot storage, and a secure non-networked configuration voters, poll workers, and election officials are assured that votes are securely cast, stored, and tabulated.
ADA Compliance

The LIBERTYVOTE allows voters, regardless of disability, to confidently cast and confirm ballot selections without requiring any additional accessories or modifications from standard configuration.
NASED Certified

The LIBERTYVOTE is a fully 2002 NASED certified DRE election system. Boasting multi-lingual capabilities and full ADA compliance, the LIBERTYVOTE meets or exceeds most state’s specification requirements.
Proven Technology

With over 20,000 units and a cumulative operating history of 500,000 hours, states can be rest assured that the LIBERTYVOTE is a tested and proven DRE election solution.







http://www.libertyelectionsystems.com/LibertyVote.htm

The features of Liberty’s election management system, the LIBERTYCONTROL, include:

NASED 2002 Certified
Third Party Tested & Approved
Comprehensive Solution – From ballot generation to vote tabulation
User Friendly Layout
Completely Secure

http://www.libertyelectionsystems.com/LibertyControl.htm

[FogerRox]

7. IIRC Liberty has yet to sell to one jurisdiction in the USA

See it here on this movie

http://fogerrox.blip.tv/file/147600/

[kster]

9. Thank goodness, all these voting machines remind me of "Pepper's Ghost"

David Wall has found a simple way to build Pepper's Ghost using simple materials like a black box and Plexiglas. You can be the magician too making virtual images appear and disappear. Here you can learn the physics behind it. :)

http://fog.ccsf.cc.ca.us/~tbardin/html/pepperghost.html

[livvy]

3. K&R and added to today's ERD. n/t

[rman]

4. See i don't even *have* to check local news any more

DU has it all.

[Kurovski]

5. They're just trying to help the people vote.

Sheesh. Give 'em a break. :sarcasm:

K&R

[In Truth We Trust]

6. Transparency, HCPB's, nothing more, nothing less.

[kster]

8. The Hand Counted Paper Ballot People, believe in,

checks, balances and public oversight!!!!!

THATS WHAT WE STAND FOR!!!! :thumbsup: