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OPINION
KANSAN.COM
opinion
KANSAN.COM/OPINION MONDAY, JULY 18, 2016
Liston: Voter suppression, not fraud, rampant in Kansas
► RYAN LISTON
@rliston23.5
Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach's legacy will be one littered with voter suppression under the guise of preventing voter fraud. Kobach's latest act of voter suppression came on July 12, when the State Rules and Regulations Board issued a temporary ruling in a case brought up by Kobach.
The ruling allows voters who registered through the Department of Motor Vehicles and could not provide proof of citizenship to vote in the upcoming federal elections, but not in upcoming local elections. Around 17,000 Kansas voters met that classification earlier this month, but up to 50,000 prospective voters
could be affected by the November general elections, according to KSHB.
Voter fraud is a non-existent problem most places and an extremely rare problem nationwide. That is not to say that it should be tolerated, but the laws put in place to deter voter fraud unfairly target people simply exercising their rights.
We cannot allow our state government to trample on the rights of people to elect their local representatives."
According to a Stanford Law Review essay, Kobach claimed there were 221 incidents of voter fraud between 1997 and 2010. That number seems significant and, for some, would be a valid reason to consider stricter voting laws; however, of these incidents, only seven resulted in prosecutions. Furthermore, of the seven prosecutions, most were simple mistakes regarding absentee voting and only two cases involved noncitizens voting.
Proof of citizenship laws implemented throughout the state are nothing more than Kobach's attempt to undermine the ability of many Kansans to vote. With all of the 165 state Legislature seats up for reelection this year, Kobach may be trying to retain as much of the far-right's control in the Kansas government as possible, especially considering a poll earlier this year found
that the Legislature only had a 25 percent approval rating.
We cannot allow our state government to trample on the rights of people to elect their local representatives. Our government should follow the will of the people, and it cannot truly do that when it bars tens of thousands of residents from participating in local elections. We must support actions taken against the strict proof of citizenship laws in Kansas, including potential legal challenges from the American Civil Liberties Union, and we must elect local representatives who support getting rid of these irrational laws.
Ryan Liston is a sophomore from Lawrence studying journalism.
Illustration by Jacob Benson
Orth: Self-driving car concept needs regulation, not abandonment
MAGGIE ORTH
@orthadontist
Americans average a staggering 1.3 million deaths by car crashes each year, roughly 3.287 deaths a day. The amount injured far surpasses that. This May saw the first reported fatality from a self-driving car, a Tesla Model S. The car was cruising on "Autopilot" when it failed to pick up a white tractor-trailer against the bright blue sky. Normally the program would
have stopped the car,but it failed,killing the driver.
This is a media nightmare for the emerging industry. The accident paints autopilot's future in a less than attractive light. Consumer Reports are calling for a halt of the semi self-driving technology until there is sufficient reprogramming, only adding to previous fears. Earlier this year, the AAA auto club reported that 75 percent of US drivers are afraid to ride in an autonomous vehicle.
The Tesla accident was a tragic event but the continued research and evolution of this concept has the potential to save a significant amount of lives. The sole purpose of autonomous driving technology is to improve safety and reduce traffic fatalities produced by human error.
According to Tesla, their "Autopilot" function has driven over 130 million miles without any incidents. Google has also reported driving its autonomous cars around 1.5 million miles.
A key factor in the story is that the driver was not following proper Tesla protocol. According to Tesla, when drivers activate Autopilot, the acknowledgment box explains that Autopilot "is an assist feature that requires you to keep your hands on the steering wheel at all times," and that "you need to maintain control and responsibility for your vehicle."
Federal officials and skeptics should take a page from the history books. In the 1970's airbags were installed widely in cars. Soon after, it became clear that the force from inflation could endanger women and children. That prompted the traffic safety agency to set new regulations that reduced the force of the bags, required further testing of the device, and developed airbags will not inflate in low-speed crashes.
The agency does not yet
have regulations for driverless cars or cars that have driver assistance systems. But when officials do put rules in place, they will have to update them regularly as they learn about how the technology reacts with reality. Automation will save lives. But buyers need to be aware, because safety is not guaranteed.
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Maggie Orth is a senior from Overland Park studying business marketing and art history.
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