The 'Secret Ballot' - A Most Nefarious Device

As many of us predicted, this election is going to the lawyers. Why? Because those of us who have been paying attention for any amount of time know that election fraud happens from the most local election all the way up to the White House. People think what happened in Illinois in 1960 could never happen again. People, on the whole, are delusional. 

The easiest, most obvious way to make sure an election is “fair,” is to make the vote public (I’ll come back to the main objection to this later). If one is honest with them-self, they know that as long as votes are cast in secret, the ones doing the counting hold all the cards. And they play them close to their chest. Imagine believing that every one of the people counting paper ballots – which were submitted in overwhelming record numbers this year – respect the process more than their individual beliefs. As Josef Stalin said; “The people who cast the votes decide nothing. The people who count the votes decide everything.” If your first response to that quote is to say that he was a dictator and that could never happen here, please think again. 

As long as the ballot is secret you can never be sure that the numbers are correct. Whether it be an “honest mistake,” or something nefarious, you’ll just never know. I hope that’s clear enough. 

Now we come to the most common objection to a public vote that you didn’t come up with on your own. You heard it from someone who heard it from someone who heard it from a talented propagandist. “The vote is private to protect the individual from intimidation and threats.” Taking that as a fact, why does no one ask the logical question as to why they would be subjected to intimidation and threats? 

Normally, if you are in a circumstance such that you can be put under duress you are either doing something wrong or dealing with criminals. Is voting the way you wish wrong? Why would your choice be so vital to someone else's interests that they would be willing to do you harm? Maybe you stumbled upon something illicit that’s happening. When that’s happened to me in my life I’ve mostly chosen to run away from the situation, to not be a willing participant. In the instances where I volunteered to put myself in danger, I knew the risks. Why would someone knowing who you voted for put you at risk? Apparently, you’ve decided to become a willing participant in someone else’s crime or fraud. Maybe the smart thing to do would be to not play their game? 

I know this is a rough one for most people. Because they don’t vote frequently it’s not something they think about often. As you watch the next few days, weeks, remember that everything you hear one side accusing the other of could be solved if the ballot was public. Until it is, you’ll just never know.