Re: Voting Machines
The EC was for two reasons:
Dilute the power of big population centers.
Be a check against an unqualified president.
The former is of questionable value (the senate does that very well, and the reforms I'd propose for that would not eliminate that while making it much more representative: it should be multi seat electorates with a preference system of voting) and the later is apparent to not work.
Things that absolutely have to change for the US to be a democracy would be removing the many months of lame duck governments (there really is zero reason for these to exist, and the emergency things that do need immediate decisions can be done and require a vote once the new government sits) and centralization of election administration so there can be confidence in the election process.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
