Intellectual Property Law

Dangling, dimpled and pregnant chads were the controversial stars of the 2000 presidential election, but are now on the endangered species list due to a federal law passed in 2002 that led Florida and other states to ditch their much-maligned punch-card machines for much-maligned electronic ones.

But a man in Florida has rescued 1,200 Votomatic III punch-card machines from extinction -- replete with orphaned chads -- and is selling them on eBay. The machines come in a metal briefcase and are selling for up to $75 with shipping, according to the Associated Press.

Republican political consultant Jim Dobyns bought the machines in 2005 from someone who purchased them from Palm Beach County, which was ground zero in the election dispute. The asking price was $12,000 thought it's unclear from the AP story if that was the final price Dobyns paid for them.

He leased 26 of the machines to HBO for use in its recent "Recount" film, which retells the story of the Bush v Gore legal battle that entranced the nation for month. He's sold others to congressional staff, presidential libraries and history teachers, and one was even given as a wedding gift.

The majority of the machines, however, have gone to Democrats who, Dobyns says, are still angry about the 2000 election. His wife theorizes that buying a punch card machine is a bit like replacement therapy for Democrats -- a way to now control something they couldn't control in 2000.

He only has 50 to 60 machines left so he's now trying to expand his revenue stream by selling chads from the machines separately. He's offering 10 chads in a baggie for $20.

He's already thinking of ways to profit from this year's election.

Photo: Steve Nesius/AP

See also:

• Sequoia Voting Systems Responsible for 2000 Presidential Debacle?
• $82 Buys E-Voting Secrets
• 3,400 Ballots Missing in Florida Election: Recount Flips Race
• Florida Primary Recount Reveals Grave Voting Problems One Month Before Presidential Election