The 2000 Presidential Election Shattered the Myth that Every Vote is Counted, 23 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 491 (2005)

A lot of things have changed since the early memories of going into the voting booth, which at that time was the old mechanical machines, and pulled those levers down. It was taught that you have to vote because each vote was going to make a difference, each vote was going to be recorded and tallied. The voting which was done on Election Day, the way one voted was going to affect our democracy. Of course during that time there were also a lot of other things happening that ran counter to this ideal, stories including police intimidation especially in black neighborhoods, poll watchers timing the voters even allegations that in 1960, in the Kennedy-Nixon presidential race, the Mayor of Chicago, Daley, was waiting for the results from downstate Illinois before he released the vote count in Chicago. Other instances included the August 1948 Democratic Party runoff to determine the candidate for a Senate race when in Jim Wells County Texas, the records showed that the last 201 people to vote happened to vote in alphabetical order, the exact same order in which their names appeared on the voter registration roll resulting in Lyndon Baines Johnson winning the Democratic nomination. However, underlying all this was the belief that eventually all votes will get counted and these glitches are harmless. This myth was shattered in 2000 when it was found that many votes really do not get counted and the fact that that inherent in the overall system is a margin of error is higher than the margin by which someone is elected or defeated. Part of the reaction was to turn to technology to solve that problem. In 2002, Congress passed the Help America Vote Act (“HAVA”). But problems regarding security, privacy, intimidation by the technology itself and trust in the system remained. All of these issues are examined in the “E-Election 2004” Symposium and need to be placed into perspective. We need to stop and remember what we are trying to do—what all of this is trying to accomplish: Which is to find a better way to ensure that our votes count and to instill in the public the feeling that their votes will be counted. The transfer of power in a democracy must be made in a way and in a manner that people respect and trust. When that respect and trust disappears, so too will the success of the transfer of power

The Do-Not-Call Registry Model is Not the Answer to Spam, 22 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 79 (2003)

This article discusses why a system to combat unwanted Internet spam, or junk e-mail, should not be modeled after the Do-Not-Call registry developed to curtail telemarketing phone calls. The Do-Not-Call registry is an opt-out system where consumers must place their phone numbers on a list that designates them as consumers unwilling to accept telemarketing calls. In the Internet spam context, this article argues that to force Internet users to place their e-mail addresses on a similar do-not-spam list could lead to potential problems. For example, if a would-be spammer was to get a hold of that list, she or he would have a list of virtually guaranteed to be valid e-mail addresses. Instead of using an opt-out system, this article suggests the implementation of an opt-in system to control spam. In this instance, consumers would place their e-mail addresses on a list only if they wish to receive unsolicited e-mail. Further augmenting the opt-in system, the article suggests the assessment of fines for spam offenders and as an incentive for Web site maintainers to ensure the security of e-mail addresses received from their Web site visitors

Morphologic Changes in the Inner Ear of Chinchilla Laniger

The use of transtympanic gentamicin has become a popular method of treating Meniere's disease; nevertheless, many questions still remain regarding this therapy. Until investigators can control the exact amount of medicine that is administered to the ear and have an understanding of the kinetics of gentamicin, therapy will continue to rely on empirical data. Previously we described the use of a fibrin-based sustained-release vehicle impregnated with gentamicin in the middle ears of chinchillas. With this model a kinetics curve of gentamicin was defined. The inner ears of these animals were submitted for immunohistochemical and histologic analysis. We discuss the ultrastructural changes seen and correlate this to our kinetics data. We also examine measurement of hair cell damage with heat shock protein levels. By better understanding the actions of gentamicin in this animal model, we hope to facilitate safer use of intratympanic medicines in our patient population