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States Throw Out Electronic Voting Machines

Posted by kdawson on from the returning-to-paper dept.

Davide Marney passes along an AP story about the thousands of voting machines gathering dust in warehouses across the country after states such as California, Ohio, and Florida have banned their use. Many of these machines cost $3.5K to $5K each. Local election boards are struggling to find ways to recover any of the cost of the machines, or even to recycle them. The picture in Ohio is the most confusing, as multiple court cases limit the state's options and result in a situation in which the discredited machines will nevertheless be used in the presidential election coming up in November. The state's new (Democratic) attorney general has just issued a rule banning the practice of election workers taking the machines home with them the night before elections.

11 of 238 comments (clear)

  1. Slashdot by niceone · · Score: 5, Funny

    Slashdot should buy at least one - and add a Cowboy Neal option to all the screens.

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    ccalam - acoustic versions of new songs.
    1. Re:Slashdot by fotoguzzi · · Score: 5, Funny

      Nice one, uh, . . ., user 992278.

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      Their they're doing there hair.
  2. Refund by Spatial · · Score: 5, Funny

    Get a refund. Alternatively, use them as catapult ammunition and return them manually.

    1. Re:Refund by geobeck · · Score: 4, Funny

      Lets have a vote on it.

      Vote results:

      Votes cast: 927
      - In favour of launching voting machines at the Diebold building: 926
      - Against launching voting machines at the Diebold building: 4096

      Well, I figured we might as well use the things before returning them.

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  3. How fast... by D.+Taylor · · Score: 3, Funny

    would a Beowulf cluster of thousands of voting machines be?

    1. Re:How fast... by dotancohen · · Score: 5, Funny

      t*9.81 m/s

      --
      It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong.
  4. Let me see ... by deaton · · Score: 5, Funny
    Wide use of these machines was adopted in the 2000 election: Winner=George Bush

    Even more are used in the 2004 election: Winner=George Bush

    Now they throw them out just in time for the 2008 election because George Bush might win again if they didn't.

  5. Obligatory by invisiblerhino · · Score: 4, Funny

    http://xkcd.com/463/

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    xterm -n 8
  6. Re:2 ideas by TobyRush · · Score: 4, Funny

    Well, I did essentially get a meat pie the last time I used one of them. Thank heavens for term limits...

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    I will try them.
    You will see.
  7. Re:Are you sure you want to plant that seed? by Ryokos_boytoy · · Score: 4, Funny

    Yeah, in the future please don't use the term "3-way" and "George Bush" together. Thanks.

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    If you don't say anything, you won't be called on to repeat it. -- Calvin Coolidge
  8. Re:BREAKING NEWS by Le+Marteau · · Score: 3, Funny

    Cluestick, meet Geoffrey. Geoffrey, meet cluestick.

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