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The Headline You Won't See On Election Day
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By this time tomorrow, the news headlines will look something like this: "Democrats Take House" or "Republicans Retain Control." But there is another story that is just as important that won't be making the nightly news or front-page headlines: "Election Hacked."
Computer-savvy users all over the web are pointing to a Princeton study that shows just how easy it is to hack into a Diebold electronic voting machine and inject a "virus" that produces any sort of result you want, then erasing itself from the machine's memory in a way that is impossible to detect. If you search for the word "Diebold" on YouTube, 135 entries show up, with clips that take from the report and mainstream news outlets (from Fox to CNN) that have verified the story.
As of mid-day Tuesday, stories of trouble with computer voting systems began to spread across the media landscape. The majority of voters are probably not aware of the problems in the next generation of electoral technologies, but last week HBO aired a documentary "Hacking Democracy" (available for viewing online here) that points to some of the ways that the systems are vulnerable.
For a more comical look at the alleged "Diebold" conspiracy, check out this favorite video on The Huffington Post's ongoing Contagious viral video festival, "The 2006 Elections: Brought to you by Diebold."
For a population that is so reliant on computer technology – i.e. those that make videos and upload then to the Internet, it's ironic how this story of technological distrust has spread across the web. Maybe it's because of the frustration that we, especially, should be able to build a better mousetrap. If Americans are responsible for some of the most technologically sophisticated computer programs on the planet -- our weapons, weather and medical technologies are first-rate – why can't we come up with a solid voting machine?
And for those who want a little more politics with their already politically saturated post-election hangover, The Huffington Post highlights this anonymously made anti-Bush ad "Freedom" on YouTube, which is a series of pictures scored to George Michael's song "Freedom." Lyrics such as "I hope you understand/sometimes the clothes don't make the man" have never felt more piercingly true. It's simple, clever, even cheesy at times, and I couldn't help from choking up.
