Collecting the Data

A combination of wonderfully high voter turnout and deadly pandemic risk led to a remarkable rise in the number of postal ballots. Those take more time to process than ballots cast through a machine, and some states don’t allow the processing to begin until Election Day.

We simply need to be patient. The American system allots plenty of time for ironing out any wrinkles. Pressure to get an outcome right away comes purely from our human desire for certainty, but we can hold that desire at bay to make sure the result is correct and complete.

Some of the tests we ran on Space Shuttle communication systems were so tedious, it took an hour and a half to run a single data point. Two full days of intense effort would get us enough data points to plot one set of conditions. Then we would have to adjust one condition and collect another two days worth of data points. It seemed to go on forever before we were able to draw all the curves needed to see how the system would behave across the full range of conditions it could encounter during a mission.

But we would not have even considered cutting any corners. If we missed something, it could be calamitous for the astronauts and the mission.

Elections are important. We must not consider cutting any corners on the counting of votes. Every vote matters. Every vote must be counted before we can be sure of the outcome.

Let’s be patient and collect all the data before drawing conclusions. It’s the sensible way forward.