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AmBlue's Journal
November 19, 2016
Ron Rivest and Philip Stark 11:26 a.m. EST November 18, 2016
This should be standard — and it's easy, too.
A Washington Post–ABC News poll found that 18% of voters — 33% of Clinton supporters and 1% of Trump supporters — think Trump was not the legitimate winner of the election. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., has called on Congress to investigate the Russian cyberattack on the Democratic National Committee and the election.
There are reasons for concern. According to the director of national intelligence, the leaked emails from the DNC were “intended to interfere with the U.S. election process.” The director of national intelligence, the Department of Homeland Security, and the National Security Agency concluded that the Russian government is behind the DNC email hack and that Russian hackers attacked U.S. voter registration databases.
We know that the national results could be tipped by manipulating the vote count in a relatively small number of jurisdictions — a few dozen spread across a few key states. We know that the vast majority of local elections officials have limited resources to detect or defend against cyberattacks. And while pre-election polls have large uncertainties, they were consistently off. And various aspects of the preliminary results, such as a high rate of undervotes for president, have aroused suspicion.
Computers counted the vast majority of the 130 million votes cast in this year's election. Even without hacking, mistakes are inevitable. Computers can’t divine voter intent perfectly; computers can be misconfigured; and software can have bugs. Did human error, computer glitches, hacking, or other problems change the outcome? While there is, as yet, no compelling evidence, the news about hacking and deliberate interference makes it worth finding out.
***
...an audit that manually examines a random sample of the ballots in a way that has a large chance of detecting and correcting incorrect results. This is called a “risk-limiting” audit. If the reported winner of a contest really won, a risk-limiting audit generally needs to examine only a small fraction of the ballots. But if the reported winner actually lost, a risk-limiting audit has a large chance of indicating that a full hand count is needed to set the record straight.
Risk-limiting audits are a crucial check on election integrity and accuracy even when elections are not controversial and margins are wide. They have been endorsed by the Presidential Commission on Election Administration and many organizations concerned with election integrity. Colorado law requires risk-limiting audits starting in 2017, and California law requires them for deploying some new voting systems.
There is no federal law mandating election audits. A number of states perform some kind of audit, but our research shows those audits have little or no chance of detecting and correcting erroneous results. To audit this election effectively will require immediate legal action.
<snip>
Ron Rivest is Institute Professor at MIT and was a member of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission Technical Guidelines Development Committee. Philip Stark, associate dean of mathematical and physical sciences at the University of California, Berkeley,was appointed to the board of advisers of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.
More here:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/11/18/election-audit-paper-machines-column/93803752/
USA Today: Still time for an election audit
Still time for an election audit: ColumnRon Rivest and Philip Stark 11:26 a.m. EST November 18, 2016
This should be standard — and it's easy, too.
A Washington Post–ABC News poll found that 18% of voters — 33% of Clinton supporters and 1% of Trump supporters — think Trump was not the legitimate winner of the election. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., has called on Congress to investigate the Russian cyberattack on the Democratic National Committee and the election.
There are reasons for concern. According to the director of national intelligence, the leaked emails from the DNC were “intended to interfere with the U.S. election process.” The director of national intelligence, the Department of Homeland Security, and the National Security Agency concluded that the Russian government is behind the DNC email hack and that Russian hackers attacked U.S. voter registration databases.
We know that the national results could be tipped by manipulating the vote count in a relatively small number of jurisdictions — a few dozen spread across a few key states. We know that the vast majority of local elections officials have limited resources to detect or defend against cyberattacks. And while pre-election polls have large uncertainties, they were consistently off. And various aspects of the preliminary results, such as a high rate of undervotes for president, have aroused suspicion.
Computers counted the vast majority of the 130 million votes cast in this year's election. Even without hacking, mistakes are inevitable. Computers can’t divine voter intent perfectly; computers can be misconfigured; and software can have bugs. Did human error, computer glitches, hacking, or other problems change the outcome? While there is, as yet, no compelling evidence, the news about hacking and deliberate interference makes it worth finding out.
***
...an audit that manually examines a random sample of the ballots in a way that has a large chance of detecting and correcting incorrect results. This is called a “risk-limiting” audit. If the reported winner of a contest really won, a risk-limiting audit generally needs to examine only a small fraction of the ballots. But if the reported winner actually lost, a risk-limiting audit has a large chance of indicating that a full hand count is needed to set the record straight.
Risk-limiting audits are a crucial check on election integrity and accuracy even when elections are not controversial and margins are wide. They have been endorsed by the Presidential Commission on Election Administration and many organizations concerned with election integrity. Colorado law requires risk-limiting audits starting in 2017, and California law requires them for deploying some new voting systems.
There is no federal law mandating election audits. A number of states perform some kind of audit, but our research shows those audits have little or no chance of detecting and correcting erroneous results. To audit this election effectively will require immediate legal action.
<snip>
Ron Rivest is Institute Professor at MIT and was a member of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission Technical Guidelines Development Committee. Philip Stark, associate dean of mathematical and physical sciences at the University of California, Berkeley,was appointed to the board of advisers of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission.
More here:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/11/18/election-audit-paper-machines-column/93803752/
November 19, 2016
Demand an AUDIT of the 2016 Presidential Election
Go sign the petition here:
https://www.change.org/p/demand-an-audit-of-the-2016-presidential-election
Hell yeah!! We should be doing this for EVERY election .
September 19, 2016
The Donald Bombings?
I keep having this sickening thought creep into my head, and it won’t leave me alone. If this disgusting, orange scumbag will publicly incite Russia to hack our elections and incite his supporters to punch people, what on this Earth would stop him from hiring people to set off explosions and IEDs all over this country to scare people into a fear-induced tizzy in an effort to compel voters to vote for him???
The tough guy…. The Badass! … the terrible Strong Man!?!?
Even if it’s not The Don himself hiring hit men, surely ISIS would find this an attractive strategy as well. Is our nation being terrorized into voting against our own best interests? I think the answer is a resounding and shocking: YES.
What is this country REALLY up against with this election?
This thought has had my stomach upset all morning.
June 8, 2016
TYT: Bernie should go to THIS Convention and the NEXT Convention.
Just heard it now. Couldn't agree more. GO BERNIE!!
June 8, 2016
Bernie.
Please kick and rec the hell out of this... And then make your own new "Bernie" post so I can k&r yours. If enough of us do it we can fill up the front page with BERNIE!!
Way to go out with a bang!! GO!! Then see you at JPR.
May 19, 2016
Dear Mr. Man
What's wrong with the world today?
Things just got to get better
Sho' ain't what the leaders say
Maybe we should write a letter
Dear Mr. Man
We don't understand
Why poor people keep struggling
But you don't lend a helping hand
Matthew 5:5 say,
The meek shall inherit the earth
We wanna be down that way
But you been tripping since the day of you're birth
Who said that to kill is a sin
Then started every single war
That you're people been in?
Who said that water
Is a precious commodity
Then dropped a big old black oil slick
In the deep blue sea?
Who told me, Mr. Man
That working round the clock
Would buy me a big house in the 'hood
With cigarette ads on every block
Who told me Mr. Man
That I got a right to moan?
How 'bout this big ol' hole in the ozone?
What's wrong with the world today
Things just got to get better
Dear Mr. Man, we don't understand
Maybe we should write a letter
Listen, ain't no sense in voting
Same song with a different name
Might not be in the back of the bus
But it sho' feel just the same
Ain't nothin' fair about welfare
Ain't no assistance in AIDS
Ain't nothing affirmative about you're actions
Till the people get paid
You're thousand years are up
Now you got to share the land
Section one, the fourteenth Amendment says:
No state shall deprive any person
Of life, liberty, or property
Without due process of law
Mr. Man,
We want to end this letter with a couple a words
"We tired a ya'll!"
Interlude for my dear Berners...
Still can't believe he's gone. I miss his unique genius and wisdom. Particularly poignant right now. Enjoy, my friends....
Dear Mr. Man
What's wrong with the world today?
Things just got to get better
Sho' ain't what the leaders say
Maybe we should write a letter
Dear Mr. Man
We don't understand
Why poor people keep struggling
But you don't lend a helping hand
Matthew 5:5 say,
The meek shall inherit the earth
We wanna be down that way
But you been tripping since the day of you're birth
Who said that to kill is a sin
Then started every single war
That you're people been in?
Who said that water
Is a precious commodity
Then dropped a big old black oil slick
In the deep blue sea?
Who told me, Mr. Man
That working round the clock
Would buy me a big house in the 'hood
With cigarette ads on every block
Who told me Mr. Man
That I got a right to moan?
How 'bout this big ol' hole in the ozone?
What's wrong with the world today
Things just got to get better
Dear Mr. Man, we don't understand
Maybe we should write a letter
Listen, ain't no sense in voting
Same song with a different name
Might not be in the back of the bus
But it sho' feel just the same
Ain't nothin' fair about welfare
Ain't no assistance in AIDS
Ain't nothing affirmative about you're actions
Till the people get paid
You're thousand years are up
Now you got to share the land
Section one, the fourteenth Amendment says:
No state shall deprive any person
Of life, liberty, or property
Without due process of law
Mr. Man,
We want to end this letter with a couple a words
"We tired a ya'll!"
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