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For as long as I can remember, I have been able to get a receipt from every fuel pump that tells me where I was, how much fuel I purchased, what kind of fuel, w

For as long as I can remember, I have been able to get a receipt from every fuel pump that tells me where I was, how much fuel I purchased, what kind of fuel, what pump I was on, how much I was charged, how much tax was added and the time of day. This has been the case throughout every part of the U.S. I have driven. The fuel companies can also verify everything that is on the receipt. I am not suggesting we vote on fuel pumps. I am simply pointing out that this appears to be an artificially created problem and not a technical problem.

olooney 7y ago
"I bought a donut and they gave me a receipt for the the donut. I don't need a receipt for the donut. I give you money and you give me the donut, end of transaction. We don't need to bring ink and paper into this. I can't imagine a scenario that I would have to prove that I bought a donut." - Mitch Hedberg Unlike donuts, I can imagine a situation where I would like to prove that my vote happened. We print out receipts for donuts, coffee, parking, all kinds of inconsequential things, ten times a day. But when it comes to voting - one of the most important transaction I'm going to do in a given year - suddenly, people are pushing hard for no receipt, no paper trail. It's transparent bullshit, obviously in bad faith, and when people start making bad faith arguments I start questioning motives. Or maybe its just so obvious to technical people because we know how vulnerable and unreliable software can be. This XKCD cartoon sums it up pretty well: https://xkcd.com/2030/ https://xkcd.com/2030/
codedokode 7y ago
Giving a comfirmation that person has voted for a specific candidate simplifies buying votes. Also, an employer might require employees to bring such a confirmation to prove that they support corporate values.
- ApolloFortyNine 7y ago
  With 30% of the population not even bothering to vote (regardless of who runs), votes would likely be eerily cheap to buy. And in many states even just getting a couple percent more to vote your way will flip the state. I'm already not a fan of allowing places to do freebies for people who have an "I voted" sticker. If it takes a freebie for you to go out and vote, I really don't think you should be voting. And it's incredibly likely they'd just vote blindly for whoever is advertising more in the area.
- SkyBelow 7y ago
  While these are problems, maybe the trade off is worth it for people to know there vote counted. There may also be a solution that allows a person to know but allows them to alter it for anyone else wanting to view it.
- olooney 7y ago
  The point isn't to get a receipt that I personally voted. The receipt analogy isn't that exact. The point is create a verifiable paper trail for the event that some registered voter voted a certain way. Paper ballots do that. He's just pointing out how ridiculous it is to argue that it's somehow too expensive or onerous to create a paper trail when every parking lot, every coffee shop, every store is able to create a more extensive paper trail even for the most inconsequential transactions.

olooney 7y ago

"I bought a donut and they gave me a receipt for the the donut. I don't need a receipt for the donut. I give you money and you give me the donut, end of transaction. We don't need to bring ink and paper into this. I can't imagine a scenario that I would have to prove that I bought a donut." - Mitch Hedberg Unlike donuts, I can imagine a situation where I would like to prove that my vote happened. We print out receipts for donuts, coffee, parking, all kinds of inconsequential things, ten times a day. But when it comes to voting - one of the most important transaction I'm going to do in a given year - suddenly, people are pushing hard for no receipt, no paper trail. It's transparent bullshit, obviously in bad faith, and when people start making bad faith arguments I start questioning motives. Or maybe its just so obvious to technical people because we know how vulnerable and unreliable software can be. This XKCD cartoon sums it up pretty well: https://xkcd.com/2030/ https://xkcd.com/2030/

codedokode 7y ago

Giving a comfirmation that person has voted for a specific candidate simplifies buying votes. Also, an employer might require employees to bring such a confirmation to prove that they support corporate values.

ApolloFortyNine 7y ago
With 30% of the population not even bothering to vote (regardless of who runs), votes would likely be eerily cheap to buy. And in many states even just getting a couple percent more to vote your way will flip the state. I'm already not a fan of allowing places to do freebies for people who have an "I voted" sticker. If it takes a freebie for you to go out and vote, I really don't think you should be voting. And it's incredibly likely they'd just vote blindly for whoever is advertising more in the area.
SkyBelow 7y ago
While these are problems, maybe the trade off is worth it for people to know there vote counted. There may also be a solution that allows a person to know but allows them to alter it for anyone else wanting to view it.
olooney 7y ago
The point isn't to get a receipt that I personally voted. The receipt analogy isn't that exact. The point is create a verifiable paper trail for the event that some registered voter voted a certain way. Paper ballots do that. He's just pointing out how ridiculous it is to argue that it's somehow too expensive or onerous to create a paper trail when every parking lot, every coffee shop, every store is able to create a more extensive paper trail even for the most inconsequential transactions.