I get offered a receipt each morning when I pay cash to buy my cup of coffee, where a mistake is meaningless and I certainly cannot deduct the cost of the coffee on my taxes, or get reimbursed by PIRG, as far as I know.

But do I get a receipt when I vote, where mistakes matter to democracy? Each year, poll workers jokingly give me a "I voted" sticker when I ask, but no real receipt. But worse, many voting machines don't even keep a printed internal "paper trail" receipt for audit purposes. No, not with today's new and "improved" touch-screen voting machines. You can watch U.S. PIRG democracy advocate Gary Kalman (pictured) and other experts in a Voice of America video talking about the need for paper trails in electronic voting machines. Excerpt from commentary by VOA's Jeffrey Young:

The credibility of a democratically-elected government begins with balloting the public believes to be fair and accurately counted. And as the technology of voting advances, election officials have to take new steps to ensure accuracy, and with it, credibility.[...]Unfortunately, many of the electronic voting machines now in use do not create receipts. So, states and [smaller subdivisions called] counties would have to purchase many millions of dollars worth of new equipment to have this capability. But ultimately, what is at stake is the credibility of the election system in a democratic society.