Quick? How many hand jokes can we make?
This past week the election conspiracy goofballs in SD Canvassing declared they are hosting a “Hand Count” Expo in Sioux Falls, to try to spread their goofiness to end the use of ballot counting machines… well, because.
Due to their failure to convince anyone that we need election results to be slower and more inaccurate by counting ballots by hand, they feel they need more conspiracy minded luddites out there to spread their gospel. So they are attempting to boost their numbers by inviting people to become “certified hand counter trainers.”
Nevermind that when they’ve tried it, hand counting has been proven to be slower and more inaccurate.
With their post, the Hand Count Expo promoters have a picture of election conspiracy huckster Rick Weible speaking to people who believe too much of what their crazy relative posts on facebook.
Of course, this is the same Rick Weible who claimed to be “a South Dakota hero…”
.. and who told Brookings County Commissioners that his life was at risk because of what he knows about the machines..
Rick Weible claims his life is at risk, and it’s a plot by the US Government (start at 5:50).
The big questions about the Hand Count Expo we should know before people consider attending is whether or not you can become certified if you’re missing a finger or two? Because if they only have a partial hand, that person may require assistive technology to effectively hand-count.
And let’s face it. The hand-counting election conspiracists of South Dakota Canvassing have a tendency to completely discount things like assistive technology. Especially when it comes to voting.
She said South Dakota Canvassing does not seem to understand why the machine exists as required by the Help America Vote Act.
These specific machines are designed to help people with disabilities vote independently.
and..
“Who in the world would be against that,” Frankenstein asked. “Who would be against helping disabled people vote? I don’t think these folks realize that when they put number three on a petition, that says electronic voting devices of any kind are prohibited.”
She said the Help America Vote Act requires one of those electronic devices to be in every polling place for every federal election. “So, if your ballot has a federal election on it, those have to be in the polling place,” she said. “So, the problem with the petition, there could be others, but the one that’s just glaring and obvious for this election lawyer is that number three, there’s no exception made for federal cases … so it outright violates the Help America Vote Act.”
and..
Frankenstein said if that happens, the county will be sued. She said she will get called to defend the county, and she will lose.
“I can’t possibly defend that,” she said. “How could I defend a county ordinance that violates federal statute?”
Just so you’re aware of all these caveats, such as no one in South Dakota is really doing slow and inaccurate hand counting of ballots in the state, that the use of technology is embedded in federal law and is never going away, and that this whole thing is a charade of self-promotion being put on by goofballs and hucksters… well then, you do you and become a “certified hand count trainer” if you’re so inclined.
I’m sure that the certificate will be be printed off on a laser printer and handed to the participants. Which is ironic, considering laser printers are a technology that actually has been hacked, as opposed to ballot counting machines which are not hooked up to the internet.
If you do decide to go, find out if you get a official tin-foil hat with that make-believe certification. It might be collectible someday when we look back 100 years from now and shake our heads over this period in history.
If there’s not a machine count of the same ballots being done at the same time, then the hand counts will prove nothing.
This is getting out of hand.
Going off the old “don’t jerk and drive” campaign, don’t jerk and hand count.
What if I am given a bad hand? I have a bad hand or no hands?
Sounds like a bunch of hand jive to me.
my wife wants to go back to the days of no tv remote too. I guess she likes watching commercials while I like checking the score of the games.
The event should be held in Miller, SD.
At a Brookings County GOP picnic, Rick himself described he had proven our elections are not secure, related how he personally printed off counterfeit ballots and the machine in Madison had no trouble counting them.
What difference does it make how the ballots are counted if any of them are counterfeit? What difference does it make how they are counted if any of them are cast by people who are ineligible to vote?
It seems to me it would be easier to slide bundles of bogus ballots into a room full of people doing hand-counting.
I volunteered for hand-counting in a local election about 50 years ago, at the suggestion of my mom, who pointed out it was a chance to participate in an historic and antiquated process that would not be around much longer.
Long tables with people sitting on either side, lots of people, lots of noise, people bringing boxes of ballots to the tables for counting, much coming and going. With that much activity, it would be easy to pull a bundle out from under a coat or a valise without detection.
Uh, Anne, every precinct has a total count of the number of people who voted in the election. It would be just a bit of a red flag if any precinct had 500 mire ballots to count than there were people who showed up to vote.
yes it would be a red flag. And then what would be done about it? Declare the entire election invalid and have a do-over? Decide to discard random ballots, being unable to figure out which ones are bogus? fight it out in a courtroom for six months?
I love the poster with Rick’s name and the phrase “South Dakota Hero” under his name. The names Billy Mills or Joe Foss come to mind when I think of South Dakota heroes. And Matthew Monfore live-streaming the hand count. Last time I saw him try to film something in Custer he was accosted. This oughta be great.
Every person that has been through a hand counted recount will tell you Mr weenie wobble is insane
Far insaner than most.
id suggest that all the auditors that arent smoking the canvasser crack go in together on a private attorney and let the attorney handle this stuff. because they will essentially be handling the same thing repeatedly in each county. that way it doesnt overwhelm staff that is already busy trying to plan and run elections. it would be expensive but these guys wont ever stop.
Her name is Sarah Frankenstein. And if she wouldn’t have to take an extreme income drop for it, she would be the best Secretary of State we could ask for.