Sun, 24 Oct 2004
I was planning on writing up a summary of how you should vote on each of the
propositions on the California ballot in the upcoming election. Steve Friedl beat
me to it though, and since I agree with him, in general, I'll limit my comments
mostly to where I disagree and the emphasis of points I concur with.
Prop 59
Public Records. Open Meetings
Yes - public disclosure of government actions is good.
Prop 60
Election Rights of Political Parties
Yes - American elections are broken in general. The current system
makes it almost impossible for third-party candidates to be elected. We really
need to move to a system in which voters can vote for multiple candidates such
as approval voting or even better, Condorcet voting in
which voters rank the candidates.
Prop 60 does nothing to improve the situation, but, at least, keeps third-party
candidates on the ballot.
Prop 60A
Surplus Property
Yes - Requires the government to pay off debt when they have a garage
sale. I'd prefer they give me back my money, but this at least puts it to good
use.
Prop 61
Children's Hospital Projects
No - Steve's right
The first thing I do when evaluating a bond measure is to look in the argument
supporting it: if it says in capital letters "DOES NOT RAISE TAXES", I
automatically vote no. This is like saying that using your credit card DOES NOT
TAKE CASH OUT OF YOUR WALLET, and if they will be intellectually dishonest on
this, I won't believe anything else they say either.
Politicians are idiots. They think they can borrow money without any way to
pay it back.
Prop 62
Elections. Primaries.
No - I'm not opposed to open primaries. If political parties want to
nominate candidates in a closed matter, they can figure out a way to do so not
at public expense. I'm against 62 because it limits general elections to two
candidates. (The opposition's repetitions about the Klu Klux Klan are absurd,
though.)
Prop 63
Mental Health Services Expansion
No - Tax the rich to pay for others' medical problems? No thanks.
Prop 64
Limits on Private Enforcement of Unfair Business Competition Laws
Yes - This will require plaintiffs to show actual damages in order to
sue for "unfair business competition". There are probably lots of things other
than fraud encompassed by "unfair business competition" that shouldn't be
illegal, but that will have to wait for another election, I guess.
Prop 1A/65
Local Government Funds/Revenues
Yes on both - I don't know that local government is any more fiscally
responsible than state government, but I suppose they can be held accountable
easier.
Prop 66
Limitations on "Three Strikes" Law. Sex Crimes. Punishment.
Yes - It doesn't get the people in prison for victim-less crimes out,
but, at least, keeps me from paying as much for their incarceration. As the opponents point out,
it would let out some nasty criminals who are currently imprisoned for
less serious crimes, but who have already served their time for their more
serious felonies. If their earlier sentences weren't long enough, sentence
guidelines for such felonies should be changed. This proposition does
double the sentences for sex crimes against children.
Prop 67
Emergency Medical Services. Telephone Surcharge.
No - There is already a 10% city tax on my phone. I don't want to pay
3% more. I pay for my medical care. If you came to my door saying I had to
pay for your medical care, I'd tell you to get lost. If doctors aren't being
paid, they should find a new job, new customers, or start a charity to raise
money for them.
Prop 68
Non-Tribal Commercial Gambling Expansion
Yes - I have mixed feelings about this one. Since Indian reservations
aren't really sovereign nations, in that their "citizens" are also U.S.
citizens and are, as far as I know, entitled to the same tax-payer funded
benefits, they should pay the same taxes imposed on the rest of us. This
initiative doesn't impose the same taxes, but would collect significant
revenues.
Alternatively, it loosens the restrictions on gambling, but not in a free
market way, granting rights to some existing enterprises.
So, 68 gets an unenthusiastic Yes.
Prop 69
DNA Samples. Collection. Database.
No - I don't think this is terribly prone to abuse, but I don't like the
idea of treating people who are arrested the same as those convicted.
Prop 70
Tribal Gaming Compacts. Exclusive Gaming Rights.
Yes - Another anti-free market initiative that gives Indians a monopoly
on gambling in exchange for, apparently, unaudited tax revenue.
Prop 71
Stem Cell Research
No - Stem Cell research should be done by private enterprises using
private funding.
Prop 72
Health Care Coverage Requirements
No - Employees should negotiate with employers for health care benefits
that they want.
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