OT: Open source voting machines and other gizmos

[jc at trillian.mit.edu (John Chambers)]

Robert L Krawitz writes:
|    Date: Thu, 25 Nov 2004 14:14:20 -0500 (EST)
|    From: "Rich Braun" <richb at pioneer.ci.net>
|    Jeff Kinz wrote:
|    > I love how government can get away with logic that goes like this:
|    >
|    > "These new devices reduce the cost of collecting toll payments"
|    > "But now we have to charge you additional fees to use them"
|
|    A small group of guys somewhere in Florida started up a software
|    company to process payments.  A couple of years later, they were
|    collecting about 16 cents for every transaction that went through
|    their system.
|
| Another example of this kind of logic: telephone surcharges for touch
| tone service (vs. pulse dial).

Yeah;  I've  heard  that  in  some  places  they  still   have   this
"surcharge", even though they no longer supply rotary-dial equipment.
I wonder how widespread this is now? Also, I've seen "antique" rotary
phones for sale, but as far as I know, they aren't being manufactured
any more.  Anyone know if they're still being made?  (I did  a  quick
google  check,  found  old  refurb  phones  for  sale, but didn't see
anything that looked new.)