where the SmartPower generation connects

Politics

Thu, 01/24/2013 - 7:20pm

This is about shift in power, what we call SmartPower.  Catch our podcast on this issue now at www.ldcoleman.com/radio Episode 312!!

One of President Obama’s advantages during the 2012 presidential election is said to be his campaign’s technology. The Romney camp did not employ technology in the same manner as that of the president's.  However developers on the Obama team now want to release the code they created in order to create wide benefit it is reported that the DNC wants to keep a lid on what could be considered a secret weapon. The DNC is concerned with the Republicans using the technology for the next election, while the developers seems to be leaning more toward licensing the software. Let's see if others are interested in having access to the program.

What Others Are Saying...

The moral issue is that they used open-source, community code as a foundation for the software, and feel obligated to contribute back to the community. Even developing it in private for the next four years wouldn’t really fix that issue as the code still would be hidden from the public eye...

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If they used any GPL code, unless they distribute it outside the DNC there is no legal or ethical obligation to release it...

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... essentially the argument is over data mining and voter tracking software ... The key elements of the OFA software is the database of voters compiled over the years and the data from a variety of sources that they mined in order to profile voters. I don’t see any big risk for the DNC or big value for anyone else...

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Sun, 11/04/2012 - 5:17pm

So, of course, the comment-sphere continues to reflect general social mistrust all the way around.  But here's what is interesting:  more evidence of the "leaderful" era.  Rather than complaining, this is about problem solving.  Moving past the issues of trust to get to a more appropriate solution that works for a new era.  So how come we don't have this tech engineering for which people are calling.  Seems like this is in direct relation to a recent article written that asked why tech was not included in the prez debates and the missed opportunity that is.  Looks like some things are due for a re-boot!

After hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey, the state decided to enable voters to submit their absentee ballots electronically to make voting more accessible. However, according to Verified Voting, one of every four voters that go to the polls nationally and imputs his or her decision electronically will not have their ballot printed, which means that those votes cannot help in a close race, like this year's. In addition, where there is no physical ballot there is no way to indicate whether votes have been tampered in a close election. Despite these challenges, voters are still coming out to the polls in record numbers. Americans dicuss the future of technology in this arena, and how to prevent voter fraud...

What Others Are Saying...

Paper trails exist on ATM's to protect banks from fraud...If gas pumps and banks have receipts, why not voter machines? There is only one reason to deny a paper receipt on electronic voting machines: their manufacturers intend to alter the vote count. A physical record could be used as evidence to convict Very Important People of election fraud... 

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I do not trust electronic voting...There is no reason for not printing a time and date-stamped receipt for the voter and one as backup for election officials for a recount if necessary. I would also suggest limits on ballot length...for initiatives, make any description Twitter length, 140 characters tops...

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Liberals, don't believe that voting machines are malfunctioning, but they believe Sandra Fluke is a real hero...Liberals try their hardest to make sure illegals vote, but they don't believe that the voting machines might possibly be malfunctioning?

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Thu, 08/30/2012 - 7:53pm

Whether it's just a rumor, will actually come to pass or planned and scrapped; ya gotta at least respect how the GOP's digital game has gotten much, much tighter since '08.  But what a paradox. Seen as utilizing forward technology but more traditional in its values and seemingly lacking in diversity.  How does that work together? According to the comment-sphere, it doesn't.  So does the demo that tech appeals to converge with that who the party wants to reach? Ponder that while/if you watch tonite.

The 'To Be Announced' speaker at the Republican National Convention has been rumored by FOX News' Trace Gallagher to be a hologram of of former President Ronald Reagan. The Reagan theory has also been the most popular answer to an online poll by The Caucus blog, which is run by The New York Times, asking its readers who they think the mystery speaker might be. This technology forward, and mesmerizing idea - remember Coachella's Tupac? - is supposedly the most popular answer, but is it what Republicans want?

What Others Are Saying...

Who cares? The conventions are nothing but a vacation for delegates and mean absolutely nothing...We used these Dem and Repub conventions as learning tools in school. They are completely meaningless now...

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Reagan himself was only convincing in his first term...I think a Reagan marionette would be much more convincing. 

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Reagan, what a joke, the guy who pulled the single highest peace time tax increase in American history (TEFRA-1982)...and who shot down anti-gay discrimination bill (Briggs Initiative) in California. Reagan was a blue dog democrate at best. If the GOP has this dead clown as it's primary endorsement then OBAMA is re-elected by a landslide...

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Thu, 08/23/2012 - 2:30pm

More on the growing trend of transparency and truth. This should really come as no surprise to anyone, at this point. Except maybe politicos who seem to lag a bit in thinking that it's still basically the same method and approach as usual. Technology is enabling greater probe and analysis, and to that end, will it even enable richer dialogue surrounding governance? Who knows, but we just saw today that the Obama camp is now accepting donations via mobile text. If only you could indicate how you wanted that, and say, your taxes actually used. Maybe that's on the horizon.

Former MIT Media Lab students have designed a Shazam-like app that listens to political advertisements on television, and matches the sound bite against a database of political ads. It proceeds to tell the listener who paid for it, how much they paid for it, and then points the audience towards sources such as PolitiFact, and FactCheck.org to verify the accuracy of the information. Therefore, this free iPhone app does not check the facts itself, yet definitely guides the public to question the validity behind politicians' claims in this vital presidential election. Let's examine what consumers and politicos are thinking...

What Others Are Saying...

Here's the only app you need: "They ALL LIE"...That's it, now give me $0.99

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Using technology for transparency....Gov2.0 rules! We need this at the debates...

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...if all political parties would realize that most political ads are primarily distortions of reality and sound bites taken out of context...In the end it relies on the reputation of Politifact, which is in dispute as it has a habit of using different standards for truthfulness.

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