Unscolitied life advice
May. 8th, 2010 05:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jack1. If you're pouring from something and it has a lid, hold the lid on with a finger if you can. Then in the 1/20 times the lid is loose it doesn't fall off and send hot/cold liquid all overr the table.
2. http://www.quirksmode.org/politics/blog/archives/2010/05/thoughts_on_the.html Advice from dutch blogger Peter-Paul Koch to Britain on handling what is in Britian called "a hung parliament", and in many parts of Europe, NZ, and so on, called "a parliament".
In short, I can't say if he's right, but (a) he says that in times of economic downturn, it's typical for voters to turn away from smaller newer parties to the devils they know (b) to Dutch voters a Con/Lib alliance is obvious, but forming a coalition should take more than three days, and everyone ought to accept that, even the financial markets.
3. DO NOT USE ELECTRONIC VOTING OF ANY FORM UNTIL YOU'VE TESTED IT!
I see there are electoral nightmares I've had as yet unrealised.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/10102126.stm Some people want e-voting. Some people say it's a terrible terrible disastrous idea.
I agree it's a good idea in principle, and am pleased people are getting on board with the idea that the internet is good for serious things. But security for e-voting is difficult for lots of reasons. Look at the American utter disaster with machines which were simply trying to count the ballots in one physical place.
That made me sufficiently cautious I wouldn't like to introduce either without coming up with a proposal and then giving it a rigorous testing.
If the current system were bad enough then possibly rushing to judgement would be better, but honestly, while postal-vote-stuffing and poll-centre-closing are impermissible mistakes, I think the current system does fairly well and needs improving, not wholesale abandonment.
2. http://www.quirksmode.org/politics/blog/archives/2010/05/thoughts_on_the.html Advice from dutch blogger Peter-Paul Koch to Britain on handling what is in Britian called "a hung parliament", and in many parts of Europe, NZ, and so on, called "a parliament".
In short, I can't say if he's right, but (a) he says that in times of economic downturn, it's typical for voters to turn away from smaller newer parties to the devils they know (b) to Dutch voters a Con/Lib alliance is obvious, but forming a coalition should take more than three days, and everyone ought to accept that, even the financial markets.
3. DO NOT USE ELECTRONIC VOTING OF ANY FORM UNTIL YOU'VE TESTED IT!
I see there are electoral nightmares I've had as yet unrealised.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/10102126.stm Some people want e-voting. Some people say it's a terrible terrible disastrous idea.
I agree it's a good idea in principle, and am pleased people are getting on board with the idea that the internet is good for serious things. But security for e-voting is difficult for lots of reasons. Look at the American utter disaster with machines which were simply trying to count the ballots in one physical place.
That made me sufficiently cautious I wouldn't like to introduce either without coming up with a proposal and then giving it a rigorous testing.
If the current system were bad enough then possibly rushing to judgement would be better, but honestly, while postal-vote-stuffing and poll-centre-closing are impermissible mistakes, I think the current system does fairly well and needs improving, not wholesale abandonment.
no subject
Date: 2010-05-10 03:14 pm (UTC)The problem with vote-by-mail is that your ballot is mailed in an envelope with your signature and address on it (required by law). So it's less anonymous than I would like. And the people tasked to open envelopes are not necessarily sworn elections officials, the process is very opaque. It wouldn't be that hard to push some envelopes to the side for seeming "too ethnic".
I often discover that I am no longer as competent as I think I am. I don't have too many problems with the lidded containers, but I could use similar warnings like, "Do not assume that because the cabinet door swung over your head yesterday when you were barefoot that it will not smack you in the forehead today with you in your tall shoes."
And no, I don't want you to leave, I just don't want to have to leave myself, which I'm going to do to everyone who hasn't left a single comment on my stuff or even introduced themselves. Someone's vouched for you not being the kind of jerk who views themselves as a celebrity deserving of worshiping fans, so you get a chance to address the issue. Thanks for doing so.