I voted today!

[wshaffer]

Not that I can say that it's a very exciting election - I rubber-stamped the single Democratic candidate for Congressman and State Assemblyperson, and did my best to pick out reasonable candidates for a raft of city/county positions. I did take some satisfaction from voting against both Propositions 98 and 99 (each of which proposes to reform the states powers of "eminent domain" - its ability to take private property (with compensation) for a variety of uses). While I didn't manage to research these two propositions as thoroughly as I wanted to, and I'm willing to be persuaded that we need eminent domain reform, the proponents of these propositions didn't persuade me. Nor did they explain to me with sufficient clarity what their propositions were actually going to do.

I suppose I have a tech-writer's view of direct democracy: If you can't explain in plain language that an ordinary person can understand what your proposition will do, you don't deserve to have it pass. (Or alternatively, if an issue is so complex that a law addressing it can't be explained in plain language, it is not an issue that's suitable to be addressed by referendum.)

As an amusing side note: I'm a permanent by-mail voter, but I waited too late to be able to mail my ballot on time, so I walked to my polling place this morning to drop it off. The polling place was someone's house, a few blocks up the street from me. When I dropped off my ballot, the owner said to me, "Oh, I know you! I see you walking every morning, with your headphones!" He said he admired me for walking every morning. I admire him for offering his house as a polling station every election. We're just a mutual admiration society.

I do wonder if Santa Clara county's push to have people become permanent vote-by-mail voters has increased voter participation. I'll admit that it seems to have made me more likely to vote. (The polling place wasn't busy when I arrived: one person was there voting, and another person arrived to drop off a by-mail ballot as I was leaving. When I've voted in presidential elections or primaries, I've usually had to wait in a short line.)

Comments

[wshaffer.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the link! I did get the impression, even in its obfuscated language, that Prop 98 was distinctly skanky. I am now wondering if I should have voted for 99 as extra insurance against 98 passing, but...the ballot is cast.