I was reminded while reading a @v4vapid comment about an article I wrote a few years ago on using blockchain for voting and I wonder if this latest pandemic where social distancing has become the buzz phrase and working remotely the norm, is the catalyst to push it into reality. Of course, it doesn't actually have to be on a blockchain, as in most places, the technology already exists to ensure registration, as well as the ability to mask voter identities through various ways.
I know that in Finland at least, pretty much all verification can be performed through bank codes, and this would be a precise way of making sure that only votes once. Being able to do all of the voting for example through an app would mean that pretty much all of the country would be able to participate from home, and that in itself would be likely to boost voting numbers, which sit around 60-70% as it is non-compulsory.
While this isn't such a big thing in Finland as in general the access to voting is fine, especially since it can be done a week or two in advance from shopping centers, places like the US where voting access is "inconsistent" could benefit heavily. The question of course would be, why aren't they making voting access easier? It definitely isn't a cost thing, because shifting to digital voting on the internet would be a massive cost saving once up and running.
Well the obvious answer is that the more inclusive voting becomes, the less control individual groups have over the outcomes, especially those already holding power in the system. We can see on Hive for example, where the distribution of stake has become more widespread throughout the community, meaning that individual groups are going to have their power diluted. We also saw that once activated, the entire community on Steem has more power combined than that of what Steemit Inc held, forcing a stalemate for a period of time, until the exit door opened.
National elections are one person one vote and therefore it has to be able to be verified as such, without dead people voting or people being bused in across regions to skew votes. Having everyone vote from home means that it is much more precise and closes many avenues for raising questions of abuse.
The new normal caused by company employees working from home is going to catalyze a lot of solutions to things like remote security as well as get people comfortable with something that we are already doing - distributed working. This unfortunate situation is going to be a driver for the evolution of the way we work and interact and a lot of that is going to start to resemble distributed networks and blockchain solutions. This will of drive for advances in these areas by people and organizations that weren't before, and they will then start to look at how they can use the technology to improve their business and generate income.
I don't think it is going to be very long before all voting is done on Hive-similar blockchains, where there will be an identification process to get the keys, but the voting itself will be randomized and masked in order protect voters from persecution. Pretty much, all of this could be done through an Smart Media Token already - where there was a verified signup process to get an issuance.
I think that these days, the technical challenge of digital voting security is barely an issue and the push back would come from the institutions themselves, as the easier it is to vote, the more people who will vote - and that can be disastrous for control. But when it comes to other uses for blockchain and distributed networks, the current world events are likely to drive the development and speed up the uptake process, as people get more comfortable doing more from their home.
This might be a boon for blockchain and crypto as people start to both get comfortable earning from home plus, lose even more faith in the centralized economies as they fail - which will push them into distributed digital revenue streams that offer ownership - like Hive.
Sometimes the catalyst for change comes from unexpected sources - and spreads like a virus.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
I only vote for voluntary governance.
Involuntary governance, imposed on non-consenting individuals based on geographic location within a fictional religious construct, called a 'country'; is none of my business, and can die in a fire.
If anything like this were to be tried in America, we’d find a way to turn it into a clusterfuck. Look at the fiasco of the recent Iowa caucuses. And it couldn’t be done all at once nationally. Constitutionallly, each state sets its own voting procedures. And there would be fierce opposition to anything that could make voting easier. Restricting voting rather than expanding it is quite popular in some circles. There have been all kinds of attempts to make voting harder rather than easier (often couched in terms of making voting more secure) but sometimes Republicans will openly admit that they don’t want to expand or improve access to voting.
Yep - the land of the free to fuck over the masses.
There is resistance in Finland too, but it is because most people don't think about how it is actually achieved. Essentially here - 100% of people have to use online banking for verification for stuff, including tax matters. The technological hurdle for "old people" is increasingly irrelevant as those "old people" grew up with computers in the workplace.
I don't follow US politics that much, nor the procedures - but it is a shambles - same as the healthcare and social service systems from what I understand. Reform is needed, but those in power will never support it - it has to come from the people themselves - but they are too busy arguing over nonsense in a polarized manner to see that the arguments are seeded.
Many Australians do a lot of work abroad because they have no job in Australia. There are also many Australians in Korea. I'm glad you're always laughing and hopeful. You may have had a lot of trouble living in Finland for 17 years, but I hope you will re-sign at work and make a happy family.
In particular, thanks for the description of Hive and Blockchain.
The unemployment rate in Australia is only about 5% so it isn't that. It is an island and a long way away from other places, people like to travel and explore the world if they can.
Vote 4 voting
Yes mainly the Right in US want to make it harder and harder to Vote. It's really evil and puts a Nation two steps backwards. We see it in Minorities who are discriminated against when it comes to Voting access, Shameful really
Given that America seems to be doing its absolute damnedest to get rid of encryption (for "security" ironically)and I think Australia similarly stupidly are insisting on back doors for law enforcement (because they cling desperately to this delusion that somehow there is no possible way crackers could utilise the exact same back doors) that may not be true for long? XD
eta: wait maybe it was "won't someone think of the children" in America I forget. They all blur together after a while as they keep using the same tropes for everything.