Is it time to make Election Day a federal holiday? 🗳️ Some say it would boost voter turnout and align the U.S. with other democracies, while others argue it could create challenges for hourly workers and cost millions. Dive into the debate over whether a federal voting holiday is the best way to strengthen democracy or if there are better solutions. Check out the full breakdown!
As a programmer I really really don’t think this is an idea we’re capable of implementing in a way that’s safe/secure/etc.
See also: https://xkcd.com/2030/
You aren’t the only programmer in the world
Yes, but I believe e-voting being a bad idea is the common opinion among not just programmers but cybersecurity professionals specifically as well.
I mean, you’re wrong lol
So laughably wrong. It’s a great idea because it puts the power in the people. It is the only equalizer left. The possibility of the outcome greatly outweighs the challenges to make it work.
There are plenty of cyber sensitive occupations that rely on the Internet and work. The fact that this one thing is “not possible” is like giving up without any effort whatsoever.
I’m not wrong lmao. I didn’t say it was impossible, I said the government is not capable of implementing it in a way that would be secure. Put up or shut up, don’t just claim that I’m wrong because you said so lol
The importance of the service is also exactly why it would be one of the most attacked online systems in the entire world. Even relatively secure systems are hit with zero-day attacks that can entirely compromise them. The US government especially is technologically outdated and I wouldn’t trust them to so much as install security updates.
I mean I know you think aren’t. But you are. It’s cool. You know programming to an extent. But there is PLENTY of evidence to show that you are. There are many other applications in use today that show it’s feasible. It’s like arguing the sky isn’t blue because you have your sunglasses on. Sure. It’s in your wheelhouse. Doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be done. It should be. It would equalize everything.
That’s just rude lol, you know nothing about my experience. My personal opinion isn’t even super relevant here though; if we look at the professional consensus, they tend to agree.
I haven’t seen any evidence that you have any understanding of this topic at all. You keep saying we should do it because it would be good-- which it would be-- but wanting something to be easy doesn’t actually make it easy. You say there’s plenty of evidence; SHOW IT then if you’re so confident! I’ll even start, here’s an article by the AAAS with sources: https://www.aaas.org/epi-center/internet-online-voting
It’s not rude. It’s factual. I don’t need to be a programmer to know it’s applications. I don’t have to be a car engineer to know they transport people and where most go. It’s absolutely egotistical to think you only know what a computer is capable of because you can program.
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The problem isn’t that it can’t be done, the problem is that it can’t be done without disruption.
If eVoting were a thing, how long do you think it would take for 4chan to completely fuck it up?
And I don’t mean in a “In a stunning upset today, the new President is write in candidate Boaty McBoatface”, I mean in a DDoS attack blocking ANYONE from voting.
Heck, even systems that expect mass traffic without interruption go down all the time like when a new game gets released, you think voting traffic is somehow immune to that?
Voting is too important to leave to an electronic system.
It’s already done electronically. The information is just shifted to a different medium. Saying that it can’t be done when it’s already being done isn’t factual.
The tabulation is done electronically, on machines with no internet connection.
Voting electronically involves opening a machine to the public internet and that way lies madness.
They most certainly have Internet connections. How else can they know who is in the system to vote? I have worked as an employee in the government that gives those to the sites for tabulations.
That’s not the way it works. When you show up to vote, you aren’t validated by the machine, you’re validated by the poll worker before you even get to the machine.
All the machine does is collect the votes, then the votes are sent to a tabulation facility physically by removing the storage from the machine and manually carrying it to tabulation. There is no electronic connection or transfer of votes.
This is the same way voting was done non-electronically. Poll worker checks you in, gives you access to the voting machine, you punch your card, put the card in a slot. All the cards are collected and sent off for counting.