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October 15, 2008
I Vote "Mostly"
There is one California ballot proposition on which I would like to vote "Mostly" rather than the more mundane but required "Yes" or "No." Like many states, here in California we have initiatives on which we must vote. The State Secretary of State is required to put them on the ballot if a sufficient, but relatively small, number of voters sign a petition to do so. In general, only one or two individuals draft these initiative propositions. They certainly aren't vetted by the give and take of the legislative process. The result is often a well-indented but deeply flawed piece of legislation.
But from time to time, one of these initiatives is just plan evil. State Proposition 8, against gay marriage, is an example. It is evil to take away a right already extended to a historically persecuted minority. A right many have already taken advantage of. It is all the more evil to take this right away when it does no harm except to the feelings of the persecutors of that minority.
My default position on all initiatives is to vote "No." Of the 12 State Measures on the November ballot, 10 are such initiatives. The other two are referenda from the State Legislature on matters that require the vote of the people at large. But I may vote "Yes" on one or two of the initiatives despite my default position. Their merits seem to overcome my default "No."
I strongly agree with the direction and intent of Proposition 7, The Renewable Energy Generation Initiative Statue. I agree with its first level of details. But beyond that, the text of the initiative degenerates into a morass of problems and ambiguities. I may end up voting "Yes" anyway but I'd rather have the choice of voting "Mostly" and give the elected State Legislature the authority and obligation to straighten out all the underlying problems.
I know such a thing won't work. The Legislature might return something worse than that for which I voted "Mostly." But I sometimes think voters should be able to set legislative vectors that the State legislators must implement with coherent enforceable legislation inline with those vectors. Of course, whom we elect should provide a strong indication of the legislative vectors we want followed. It just doesn't seem to work out that way as often as I would like.
Posted by Duane Smith at October 15, 2008 3:28 PM | Read more on Current Events |
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