Nov 2 in california
Okay, first... I'm LAME... I'm sorry to everyone who has emailed me and I haven't responded to yet, and all the people I haven't talked to or hung out with for seemingly all fall. I should be getting time soon.
Second, this blog, like all living systems, suffers from link rot if you don't maintain it. Deleting 720 comments worth of blogspam is a major pain in the ass...
Anyway, more importantly, it's the time of year again to go vote. In the past, I've talked to many people who were of the "no-vote" philosophy. This predominantly anarchist form of dissent was always something of a mystery and irratation to me. While I was an anarchist itself, not voting as a form of dissent seemed counterproductive, and really, you should use all means possible to further your goals whether it is "legitimized" or not no? Ironically, this election I am the most disaffected and apathetic I have been of any election. When I actually visualize myself in the ballot box giving a vote for some rich dude as a method of protest of another rich dude, and having the "alternative" vote be a populist demagauge that specializes is sucking money from naive college kids.. And having my hopes of reform through ranked-choice voting dashed by Australia's recent election of a far far right wing minister. I'm more than happy to think about my own life and not about slimebags that make a lot of money for people other than myself. When I think about this, I feel very much like I'm voting for what size nail one should hammer your coffin with.
However, that aside, I *am* going to vote this election. My primary concern is not so much on the presidential level, but rather on the California level. The ballot props, as usual for california legislation, pulls stuff in interesting directions. Here are my "endorsements" - however, I'm strangely undecided in a lot of them. If anyone has any useful guides or suggestions on these ballot props, let me know.
- 1A and 65: I'm still undecided on this one. This is a Republican back initiative, and I am definately in favor of local tax dollars remaining local.... However, California is a veritable poster-child for state-funded mega-projects: superfreeways, irrigation works, and big state universities. For all the liberatarian talk that is based in the Valley, California is very much NOT liberatarian in it's management of infrastructure. ill the shift work?
- 59 (transparency) - Voting yes - transparency is a core value of democracy blah blah
- 60 (outsiders voting in primary elections)- Voting yes - Let the bastards have their cakes.
- 60A (state surplus for paying off bonds - undecided, leaning no - hopefully, I won't be in California long enough to have to care.
- 62 - (see 60) - voting no, see above
- (mental health care) - voting yes - make my taxes do something useful
- 64 (caps on lawsuits) - lawsuits suck. If this was worded to have a cap on lawsuits against both business and individuals, I would vote for it. As is, it's basically just a protectionist clause for the empire. Voting NO, and I hope other Californians do the same.
- 66 (3 strikes law limits) - Voting YES - 3 strikes law is insane and it needs limits.. Hope other Californians do the same.
- 68 and 70 (indian gaming taxation) - no on BOTH. Tell the governator NO MORE BROKEN TREATIES. Indian Tribes are SOVEREIGN, PERIOD. Taxing them is just another example of some fucking european governor AGAIN coming over from austria and screwing the fourth world over even more. Do we have to regress to 1850? We can get our money from elsewhere.
- 69 (dna sample police state) - voting NO - tell the biometric police state to FUCK OFF. Hoping other californians also vote against this piece of bio-orwellian legislation.
- 71 (stem cell research) - this is another tricky one, and reminds me of the infamed Simpsons episode with the monorail. It's a sexy sounding technology that everyone wants... But at the same time it's basically a blank check to fuel IP research for the 10 major biotech corporations sitting at the head. Currently, technology transfer between a govt funded insitution and the private sector works by giving discounted IP rates to the company of choice. This SUCKS. You are forking over what should be public domain knowledge funded by our money to some dude who'll just blow it on strippers anyway. On top of that, gene therapy has been kind of a dead end so far, it would be more pragmatic to fund our existing biomedical infrastructure... But DAMN I WANT IT ANYWAY. MONOOOORAAAAAAAIL! I'm voting YES!!!!! wooooohooo!!! Genetech better give me a phat contract because of this.
- 72 (health care coverage) - Health insurace is a RACKET. It's a broken system that sucks money from your wallet into another endless stream of cash for what basically amounts to no value for society. However, I also know too many people on the other side of the equation. I'm voting YES to those goldbricking bastards - I hope someone gets some good out of it.
Okay THERE. That's my coverage. I'm more than open to intelligent counterarguments. Anyone want to pitch one?
Posted by Da Mystik Homeboy at October 24, 2004 06:36 PM