Terror fears to slow (Fresno) vote results

[Newsjock]

http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/9035616p-9932333c.html

By Kerri Ginis
The Fresno Bee

Fresno County voters will have to wait at least two hours longer for election results in November because officials are concerned that terrorists could tamper with returns transmitted over phone lines.

Poll workers no longer will send the results electronically after the polls close at 8 p.m. Instead, drivers will transport the voting machines from as far away as Coalinga and Shaver Lake to a warehouse in downtown Fresno guarded by sheriff's deputies. Officials will take out the memory cards and download the results directly onto the county's election server.

... Concerns have been growing throughout the United States about the possibility of terrorists disrupting November's general election. Authorities arrested a Pakistani man earlier this month who they said was communicating with al-Qaida operatives about a plot to carry out an attack to disrupt the U.S. election.

... The plan is for the drivers to leave with the machines, which are similar in size to a computer printer, shortly after the polls close. Once they get to the warehouse, the machines will be logged in and their memory cards extracted.

more

[Stephanie]

1. This is good, right?

They acknowledge the machines can be tampered with. If they want to use al queda for a bogeyman that's fine with me, so long as they are acknowledging that there is a danger in these machines.

[Joanne98]

2. It's Fresno

RW area. I don't know if it's good or not.

[tinanator]

3. and who is the danger from?

ballots protected by the sheriff's who infiltrated the peace group? the sheriff who has been cashing checks from a private security company "Fresno County Security" that buys ex-Sheriff patrol cars and equiptment without a competing bid? If you want to find crooks, thats a good place to look. Fresno ballots had been secure until now. This is how they did the SF ballots on Municipal Power that "lost" by a hair the same year of the Electricity scam. Heres a broad hint- when the word "terror" is utilized, just translate it as "BULLSHIT"!

[Boredtodeath]

4. Admission: The machines can be hacked

Said Fresno County Clerk Victor Salazar: "Yes, it's going to take longer, but there are those who will attempt to hack into our computer system, so we're going to close down our points of access."

"If we have open phone lines, someone can get into it without us knowing," said Marc Gonzalez, an analyst in the County Clerk's Office. "This way, the results will go onto our own local network that's not connected to the Internet and not connected to the county's Web site."
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What is the law about California procedures? Do precinct totals have to be posted at the precinct? Can they move the machines, print the totals, then go back and post them?

Why didn't the reporter ask these questions?

[Torgo Johnson]

5. Nothing to worry about....

RimJob will be there personally to make sure all the votes for Bush will get tallied.

:puke:

[sniffa]

6. exactLy

i was gonna say, fresno is freepviLLe.

[tinanator]

9. thats not true

maybe homebase for rimjob and his little posse of whackjobs, but those jerks are outnumbered and you have no right to say that. Even with a predominantly conservative/uninformed populace, only a small percentage are freeks.

[Norquist Nemesis]

7. If they truly were worried

about 'terrorists' hacking the phone lines or finding some other way to 'disrupt' they wouldn't be putting the method of transportation out in the public domain! They'd be coming up with a real plan that is secure.

For example, download at the precinct AND transfer over phone lines then verify the two agree. But if this is BBV, it can't be trusted anyway. :shrug:

[Parche]

8. terra

And its not like a Terra ist would attack any CARS either would they?

How stupid do these people think we are?