I was actually wondering that exact thing about a week back. (The lesson here: Don't read books on Quantum Physics just before bed. It does odd things to your dreams)
Thanks to all who responded to the OP! I can sleep much easier now.
There is a VERY good reason you don't walk away with proof of anything more than THAT you voted.
If you had a way of proving how you (you, specifically, not you as in 'your voting area') voted, it would be far too easy to arrange the buying and selling of votes, voter intimidation, etc.
As a far fetched example (far fetched today. Not so far fetched all that long ago):
You walk out of the voting station and a guy with a Big Heavy Stick (or a cell phone to call another guy with a Big Heavy Stick who is standing over your wife and kids) takes your reciept from you and verifies you voted 'correctly'. Didn't vote for the 'right' candidate? Say goodbye to one of your kids.
Or hey...let's say that your party lost. The party that won wants to "crack down on Terrorists here at home!" First thing they need to do, of course, is find out who might be holding a grudge from the last election. Here is this list of who voted, and how they voted. Okay, it only assigns the vote to a phone number, but we can pull phone records to see who called each of these numbers...
Are you SURE you want concrete proof of how you specifically voted?
Me, I want concrete proof of how everyone voted as a whole (paper ballots, etc), but I do NOT want any way to tie the vote back to an individual. The closest you should be able to tie the vote back is to the specific voting location and maybe the specific voting station.
Aside from getting tea, is...well, read Slashdot and catch up on my web comics.
While doing that, I'll verify nothing went splat over night\over the weekend. Check the automated reports, make sure they went out, etc.
I get in at 6 ack emma...nobody else is around, aside from some poor Production line schmucks. No one to greet, no one to kick off the system if I need to do something.
Somewhere around 7, I'll start doing actual work. The first hour is just a good chance to get organized and caught up.
Sony didn't buy Sigil...it just became the publisher of Vanguard.
I remember the day. It was as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.
Heck, even fit the medic-bots with menacing red eyes and 500 pounds of ammo.
If you find yourself wounded in the middle of a firefight, which will make you feel more comfortable - being carried out by a carebear that wouldn't hurt a fly, or being carried out by something that looks like it will decimate any opposition in its path?
If I see am wounded in battle and see something that looks like Nemesis from RE:Apocolypse coming at me, I'm gonna have a warm fuzzy feeling in my chest if its on MY side...and a warm, squishy feeling in my pants if it isn't.
I'll be halfway through a commercial break, decide I need a snack or something, and catch myself trying to guess if I have enough time before the commercials are over. (Doh!)
That is when I'll remember I'm watching a recording, and pause it, then fast forward through the rest of the commercial break when I get back. Otherwise, I tend to just let them run.
From the article: The SEC recently announced that they would suspend trading of companies whose stocks had been the target of spam campaigns to manipulate the price.
Does anyone else see the problem with that? If I want to kill my competitor's stock, all I have to do is launch a pump and dump scam using it as the target?
Yes, it (the prosecution) generally needs to show intent to commit a crime. Clearly, the man had no intent to commit a crime. (And here, we mentally rehash all the examples made yesterday)
If I walk in to a stranger's unlocked house, it is possible that I could be shown to have implied intent to trespass, since a reasonable person would generally know that you don't walk in to someone's home uninvited. It isn't a sure thing, though. I might argue that I thought it was the home of a friend (who happens to live next door, and who I had only been to visit once, five years ago. I just got confused.)
If I drive across somebody's private property\private road because it connects to a public road, and there isn't any signs indicating that it isn't a restricted access area, you will have a very, very difficult job showing intent.
That is essentially (in my mind) what happened here. He saw a public access point, there was no indication that it was restricted, he could easily access it in a public place...and lots of places do, indeed, have free wireless access points that absolutely anybody is welcome to use.
So how do you propose to show he had implied intent to commit an (obscure) crime?
Ah well, I was making a lame joke, not trying to resurrect a pointless arguement. Have a good day!
"Other features include always-on Internet connectivity via various wireless technologies."
Hmmm, by automatically joining unsecured wireless access points, perhaps?
Turn on your laptop, commit a felony! (According to some Michigan prosecuters, at least)
3. Oh, to be sure, plenty would toe up and follow the Official Line. I have very little faith in my fellow man, sadly. Not all would, though. Enough would turn to make life...interesting for the Powers That Be. One interesting thought experiment I have been running and trying to get other people to run for themselves is, "What would it take to make you decide that Revolution was needed. Not just protests, but actual armed revolt. Once at that point, how do you go about it?"
2. Exactly. Knowing the enemy is the key to victory. Once I know how 'he' operates, I can devise a working plan to defeat him. Without knowing how he operates, my plans are going to be somewhat ineffective. I don't need to know how to overthrow the government. My actions will be dictated by circumstances at the (hypothetical, I should note) time.
1. By all means. Heck, I do own a shotgun, myself. I would use it, rather than the stick, since I happen to have it. I just don't see it as a needed component. It only takes a few people like me with sticks and available boobie-distractions to start arming everyone else.
See, this is something I perceive as a common fallacy.
People that assume we need guns in the hands of civilians to ward off an oppressive government overlook a few things: 1) I don't need to own a gun as long as the police\military have them. All I really need is a BigStickofRevolution(tm), a dark alley, and possibly my roommate flashing her breasts as a distraction. I am now armed in the event of an uprising. I can trade up from there.
2) Being ex-military (like many people), I already know how to use those bigger guns and things that go 'Boom'. I even know common military strategy, the psychology of the average soldier, etc. The government was more than willing to train me in the things I need to know to overthrow it, should the need arise.
3) That soldier\cop\government worker? He lived down the street from me before he joined the Oppressive Government Regime. If he didn't live down the street from me, he lived down the street from somebody. Chances are, if things got so bad that we, the civilian population, had to revolt against our government, we would be doing so with the active support of a large portion of it's military and police force. If I don't already have a gun, chances are one of them will hand me one. I probably won't even need my BigStickofRevolution(tm)
Now, I actually have no problem with civilians owning guns, but using 'To keep us safe from the gubmint' as a reason for owning one never really flies with me.
and to continue in the "I'm not a complete idiot, but I play one on teh intertubes" spirit...
Some Clueless User just bought a brand shiny new machine a few months ago. The unkempt young fellow that sold it to them made a big deal about how it had 64 bits!
Of COURSE they are going to install the 64-bit version. I don't buy an 8 cylinder SUV and tell the dealer to only put a 4 cylinder engine in it, after all!
Granted, our Clueless User won't be doing a 'nix install any time soon, but that's part of the point and goal...get it so that they can and do.
Yep. Free Speech.
Again, we don't have to like it, we don't have to agree to it.
Heck, I would personally clap and cheer if those morons were to die in a fiery car crash. They still have a right to Free Speech, though.
How does him standing outside their building prevent them from practicing their religion?
If he is blocking the entry, or blaring air horns (which crosses over into 'Disturbance of the Peace'), or some such, sure...not he is infringing on their right to practice their religion. Standing out front with a sign? Free Speech.
Yes, that goes for the nazi wanna be in front of a synagogue, as well as this guy standing in front of a $cientology building.
In the case of the nazi, I think he is a scumbag wasting his time. In this guys case, I'll just settle for 'wasting his time'.
In either event, though, I'll support their right to Free Speech, regardless of whether or not I agree with what they are saying.
Errrm, it isn't just a 'viable solution', it is how the 'regular folk' do it (with TiVo).
I had a PC based DVR set up and running for a long time. Loved it, but between it, my server(s), my main gaming box, etc, my poor electrical system couldn't handle it. Well, maybe tossing in the extra air conditioner didn't help.
So I gave up, cashed in my GeekCred, and bought a TiVo. It comes with an IR tuner. I can't order the In Demand stuff through TiVo directly, but nothing stops me from switching my TiVo over to that channel and using my regular remote to order up the movie. Well, nothing expect my dislike for renting by the movie. That is what NetFlix is for, after all.
Slashdot Mirror
I was actually wondering that exact thing about a week back. (The lesson here: Don't read books on Quantum Physics just before bed. It does odd things to your dreams)
Thanks to all who responded to the OP! I can sleep much easier now.
If you had posted this yesterday, I'd be modding you up right now.
Cockblocked by Karma?
No, we would attach a spork to a blender if we thought it would make us look cool.
We don't care if it is actually useful.
No, no, and no.
There is a VERY good reason you don't walk away with proof of anything more than THAT you voted.
If you had a way of proving how you (you, specifically, not you as in 'your voting area') voted, it would be far too easy to arrange the buying and selling of votes, voter intimidation, etc.
As a far fetched example (far fetched today. Not so far fetched all that long ago):
You walk out of the voting station and a guy with a Big Heavy Stick (or a cell phone to call another guy with a Big Heavy Stick who is standing over your wife and kids) takes your reciept from you and verifies you voted 'correctly'. Didn't vote for the 'right' candidate? Say goodbye to one of your kids.
Or hey...let's say that your party lost. The party that won wants to "crack down on Terrorists here at home!"
First thing they need to do, of course, is find out who might be holding a grudge from the last election. Here is this list of who voted, and how they voted. Okay, it only assigns the vote to a phone number, but we can pull phone records to see who called each of these numbers...
Are you SURE you want concrete proof of how you specifically voted?
Me, I want concrete proof of how everyone voted as a whole (paper ballots, etc), but I do NOT want any way to tie the vote back to an individual. The closest you should be able to tie the vote back is to the specific voting location and maybe the specific voting station.
Aside from getting tea, is...well, read Slashdot and catch up on my web comics.
While doing that, I'll verify nothing went splat over night\over the weekend. Check the automated reports, make sure they went out, etc.
I get in at 6 ack emma...nobody else is around, aside from some poor Production line schmucks. No one to greet, no one to kick off the system if I need to do something.
Somewhere around 7, I'll start doing actual work. The first hour is just a good chance to get organized and caught up.
If flying through the air were possible, we would eventually be able to figure out how to do it just by waving our arms.
As someone above touched on...not necessarily.
What if it is possible to send messages in to the past, but only if the past recipient has a certain receiver configured just so?
Until the receiver is built, we can't receive the message. Not even the message telling us how to build the receiver.
Not saying that's the case, mind you...just sayin'
Sony didn't buy Sigil...it just became the publisher of Vanguard. I remember the day. It was as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.
Heck, even fit the medic-bots with menacing red eyes and 500 pounds of ammo.
If you find yourself wounded in the middle of a firefight, which will make you feel more comfortable - being carried out by a carebear that wouldn't hurt a fly, or being carried out by something that looks like it will decimate any opposition in its path?
If I see am wounded in battle and see something that looks like Nemesis from RE:Apocolypse coming at me, I'm gonna have a warm fuzzy feeling in my chest if its on MY side...and a warm, squishy feeling in my pants if it isn't.
That happens with me, half the time.
I'll be halfway through a commercial break, decide I need a snack or something, and catch myself trying to guess if I have enough time before the commercials are over. (Doh!)
That is when I'll remember I'm watching a recording, and pause it, then fast forward through the rest of the commercial break when I get back. Otherwise, I tend to just let them run.
From the article:
The SEC recently announced that they would suspend trading of companies whose stocks had been the target of spam campaigns to manipulate the price.
Does anyone else see the problem with that?
If I want to kill my competitor's stock, all I have to do is launch a pump and dump scam using it as the target?
Yes, it (the prosecution) generally needs to show intent to commit a crime.
Clearly, the man had no intent to commit a crime.
(And here, we mentally rehash all the examples made yesterday)
If I walk in to a stranger's unlocked house, it is possible that I could be shown to have implied intent to trespass, since a reasonable person would generally know that you don't walk in to someone's home uninvited. It isn't a sure thing, though. I might argue that I thought it was the home of a friend (who happens to live next door, and who I had only been to visit once, five years ago. I just got confused.)
If I drive across somebody's private property\private road because it connects to a public road, and there isn't any signs indicating that it isn't a restricted access area, you will have a very, very difficult job showing intent.
That is essentially (in my mind) what happened here. He saw a public access point, there was no indication that it was restricted, he could easily access it in a public place...and lots of places do, indeed, have free wireless access points that absolutely anybody is welcome to use.
So how do you propose to show he had implied intent to commit an (obscure) crime?
Ah well, I was making a lame joke, not trying to resurrect a pointless arguement. Have a good day!
"Other features include always-on Internet connectivity via various wireless technologies." Hmmm, by automatically joining unsecured wireless access points, perhaps? Turn on your laptop, commit a felony! (According to some Michigan prosecuters, at least)
In reverse order:
3. Oh, to be sure, plenty would toe up and follow the Official Line. I have very little faith in my fellow man, sadly.
Not all would, though. Enough would turn to make life...interesting for the Powers That Be.
One interesting thought experiment I have been running and trying to get other people to run for themselves is, "What would it take to make you decide that Revolution was needed. Not just protests, but actual armed revolt. Once at that point, how do you go about it?"
2. Exactly. Knowing the enemy is the key to victory. Once I know how 'he' operates, I can devise a working plan to defeat him. Without knowing how he operates, my plans are going to be somewhat ineffective.
I don't need to know how to overthrow the government. My actions will be dictated by circumstances at the (hypothetical, I should note) time.
1. By all means. Heck, I do own a shotgun, myself. I would use it, rather than the stick, since I happen to have it.
I just don't see it as a needed component. It only takes a few people like me with sticks and available boobie-distractions to start arming everyone else.
Damn, and me without mod points.
See, this is something I perceive as a common fallacy.
People that assume we need guns in the hands of civilians to ward off an oppressive government overlook a few things:
1) I don't need to own a gun as long as the police\military have them. All I really need is a BigStickofRevolution(tm), a dark alley, and possibly my roommate flashing her breasts as a distraction. I am now armed in the event of an uprising. I can trade up from there.
2) Being ex-military (like many people), I already know how to use those bigger guns and things that go 'Boom'. I even know common military strategy, the psychology of the average soldier, etc. The government was more than willing to train me in the things I need to know to overthrow it, should the need arise.
3) That soldier\cop\government worker? He lived down the street from me before he joined the Oppressive Government Regime. If he didn't live down the street from me, he lived down the street from somebody. Chances are, if things got so bad that we, the civilian population, had to revolt against our government, we would be doing so with the active support of a large portion of it's military and police force. If I don't already have a gun, chances are one of them will hand me one. I probably won't even need my BigStickofRevolution(tm)
Now, I actually have no problem with civilians owning guns, but using 'To keep us safe from the gubmint' as a reason for owning one never really flies with me.
and to continue in the "I'm not a complete idiot, but I play one on teh intertubes" spirit... Some Clueless User just bought a brand shiny new machine a few months ago. The unkempt young fellow that sold it to them made a big deal about how it had 64 bits! Of COURSE they are going to install the 64-bit version. I don't buy an 8 cylinder SUV and tell the dealer to only put a 4 cylinder engine in it, after all! Granted, our Clueless User won't be doing a 'nix install any time soon, but that's part of the point and goal...get it so that they can and do.
The GP didn't equate piracy with murder. He merely demonstrated that an 'attempt' can often be, and often is, something we should consider criminal.
Yep. Free Speech. Again, we don't have to like it, we don't have to agree to it. Heck, I would personally clap and cheer if those morons were to die in a fiery car crash. They still have a right to Free Speech, though.
How does him standing outside their building prevent them from practicing their religion? If he is blocking the entry, or blaring air horns (which crosses over into 'Disturbance of the Peace'), or some such, sure...not he is infringing on their right to practice their religion. Standing out front with a sign? Free Speech. Yes, that goes for the nazi wanna be in front of a synagogue, as well as this guy standing in front of a $cientology building. In the case of the nazi, I think he is a scumbag wasting his time. In this guys case, I'll just settle for 'wasting his time'. In either event, though, I'll support their right to Free Speech, regardless of whether or not I agree with what they are saying.
Errrm, it isn't just a 'viable solution', it is how the 'regular folk' do it (with TiVo). I had a PC based DVR set up and running for a long time. Loved it, but between it, my server(s), my main gaming box, etc, my poor electrical system couldn't handle it. Well, maybe tossing in the extra air conditioner didn't help. So I gave up, cashed in my GeekCred, and bought a TiVo. It comes with an IR tuner. I can't order the In Demand stuff through TiVo directly, but nothing stops me from switching my TiVo over to that channel and using my regular remote to order up the movie. Well, nothing expect my dislike for renting by the movie. That is what NetFlix is for, after all.