Not so sure about this ID thing

At my Butler County precinct, our year-old electronic, touch-screen voting machines looked like robots on wheels, but they are really high-tech computers. Three raised panels tilt at 75 degrees, hiding the flat screen inside. If the machines could talk, they might say, "Come on in, voter. Push my nice buttons."

Definitely not an executioner's chamber (see below).

Twenty or so of these machines lined the walls in a U-shape. All but two were in use when I voted at 9:30 a.m. Two tables of elections workers in the middle of the "U" seemed happy and helpful.

One troubling thing, though, was that I had to show my ID to vote, even though I was prepared for it. There was no harm, really. It just didn't feel all that great. One prospective voter balked before handing his license over to the smiling elections worker. I felt his pain. Apparently, so did a local congressman.

Unlike Rep. Steve Chabot this morning, I was allowed to vote the first time, though my driver's license still lists my old address. The smiling poll worker just asked to write down the last three numbers on my license and pointed to the e-voting machine, where I pushed lots of nice buttons.

I still don't like this ID thing. Do you?