Originally Posted by Can't Know

So here's the bottom line.

Do we want to err on the side of working to ensure that only valid votes are cast, even if that means some people who are eligible to and desire to vote are unable to do so?

Or do we want to err on the side of working to ensure that those who are eligible and want to vote can do so, even if that means that some fraudulent votes will be cast?

For those who remember the lesson of Watergate -- the "win at all costs/the end justifies the means" attitude -- we simply don't trust that weaknesses in the system will not be exploited, whether by those in power, those who want to be in power, or those who want to help either way.

And so long as the Acorns of the world make it apparent that the system *can* be exploited, I'm going to fall into the first group.

If someone really wants to vote, they will find the means necessary to do so. Certainly there is no reason to lay an unseemly burden on them, but I still fail to see how requiring some manner of ID (at least if it's done at no expense to the voter) is an unseemly burden. And can we be honest? If they aren't motivated to vote, ANY burden will be unseemly, and well, so be it; the unmotivated voter is only slightly better than the fraudulent one.

Moreover, registration is itself a burden, is it not? But we don't have a problem with requiring people to register. So why all the fuss about requiring that they show they are in fact the person who is registered?