Post by TRIPWIRE on Nov 5, 2006 18:40:55 GMT -5
November 5, 2006
Election Day 2006
Written by David M. Hickerson
Originally Posted at tripwire.hickersonfamily.net/2006_1105.html
It has been a long time since I bothered to write an article here, huh? With life moving at an unprecedented pace of late, I simply haven’t had a whole lot of time to devote to Tripwire. That said, the election (coming up Tuesday) has me at attention and I wanted to write up a few complaints (and praises, if I think of any) on the subject.
There are four state issues I’d like to gripe about first:
Issue 2: State Constitution Amendment setting Ohio’s Minimum Wage to 6.85$ hourly.
I’m not technically against the idea of raising the minimum wage to 6.85$ per hour, but I will not be voting for it for a few reasons. Firstly, I do not feel that the state constitution is the right place for this sort of provision. As a law, I might consider voting for it, but the Constitution is simply not a document we should be changing on a regular basis. Secondly, albeit selfishly, I think that if 5.25$ per-hour workers get a 30% raise with no performance improvement, so should I. I think it is illogical to artificially increase or decrease anything, and particularly unfair to do so in the case of wages and compensation.
I could also go on about how I believe it can hurt the economy by stifling job creation, but that argument is old and everyone has heard it before so there is really no point in me harping on it endlessly.
Issue 3: State Constitution Amendment in favor of additional gambling establishments in Ohio, as well as apportioning some profits of same to certain educational programs.
I believe people should be allowed to do whatever they want with their hard-earned (or not so hard-earned, in certain cases) money, with exceptions for viewing of child porn, paying for sexual favors, or buying nuclear weapons. That said, I’m voting against this particular provision, again partly on the grounds that the state Constitution is a bad place for it, but also because I have little faith in the state’s ability, or willingness, to put the money into the coffers of the educational systems it claims this will help.
Issue 4: State Constitution Amendment that essentially banns smoking in most public places in Ohio.
Yet another proposed amendment to our state Constitution that simply doesn’t belong there. I happen to support business-owners’ rights to choose whether they will allow smoking within the walls of their establishments, as well as their patrons’ rights to purchase goods and services elsewhere. If it isn’t apparent, I will not be voting for this particular amendment, even though it clearly indicates that there are exceptions for most bars, bowling facilities, private residences, and bingo places. 4 Yep, bingo games are apparently an OK place to smoke – go figure.
Issue 5: Proposed Law that, interestingly, also attempts to ban smoking.
What the heck is going on here? Not only do we have a proposed amendment, but, in case that fails, a proposed law as well? I’m not voting for this one either. It is too prohibitive, not allowing nearly as many exempt places as the before-mentioned amendment, and I really think that non-smokers, with the exception of those who live with respiratory problems, are overreacting about the severity of the situation.
There are additional issues, local and otherwise, but I really can't go over each and every one of them, let alone my thoughts on each. For instance, there are over seventy issues in Hamilton County, where I live, so my commentary could last a hundred pages on that alone. Please visit your county's website if you want more information about the issues specific to your area, and don't be afraid to do a little research.
Now to the Governor’s race. Sure, we have 30-plus positions in the balance right now, but this is the only one I, or most people I’ve talked to, really care about. We have six candidates for governor: two “write-in” guys, two from the traditional “big” parties, one from the Green party and another from the Libertarians.
Write in candidates are obviously at a significant disadvantage because, like myself, many voters are bad with names, so they won’t remember them when they get to the ballot. Sure, we could write them down on a napkin, but then we'd probably just forget it at home or accidently take our grocery list instead. That is why, for the sake of my writing, I’m going to ignore them. I’m not saying you should do the same, but if I can’t remember their names long enough to switch from my internet browser to the window I’m typing in, I obviously don’t care enough to research them in significant detail, nor will the average voter. If your name isn’t at least on the ballot, you’re probably hopeless, sorry.
On the flip-side of the coin, we have the big battle between Republican Kenneth Blackwell, with running mate Thomas Raga, and the Democrat ticket favoring Ted Strickland and Lee Fisher. Neither of the big parties impress me, and everyone in the state likely knows everything they could possibly want to (and more) about them, so as far as I’m concerned these guys can blow smoke up each others’ rear-ends until the end of time – I will not vote for them, nor do I intend to spend any more time discussing them.
That leaves me with Green Party candidate Robert Fitrakis, with Anita Rios flying as wingman, or the Libertarians who have put forth Bill Peirce and Mark Noble. While the odds favor the Republican or Democrat candidates, I’m not the sort that feels like I’m wasting a vote if I go with a different party – instead, I feel as if I’m part of a growing “dissenting voice” within the nation that has become fed up with the Big Two. I don’t have to agree with every position that a party espouses for them to gain my vote, otherwise I’d be forced out of every election entirely, but I think both of these parties stand for change. Whether that is a good or bad thing is up to us to decide, but I think that change, in this case, is generally good.
For instance, the Guiding Principles of the Libertarian Party of Ohio:
1. Free and responsible people should be able to control their own lives without interference from the government.
2. Nobody spends somebody else's money as carefully as he spends his own.
3. What you own, you tend to take care of; what belongs to no one or everyone tends to fall into disrepair.
4. Government has nothing to give anybody except what it first takes from somebody. Remember, that a government that's big enough to give you everything you want, is also big enough to take away everything you have.
5. Sound policy requires that we consider long-term effects and all people, not simply short-term effects and a few people.
6. Liberty makes all the difference in the world.
Seems to me like a lot of people agree with the statements of the above six bullets, and sure, Republican candidates claim they are for smaller government too, but do we really believe that after six years of their dominance at the federal level? I don’t, and I’m not convinced of any Democrat’s claim on that either. The Libertarians certainly appear, at least on paper, to support smaller government and less “Imperial entanglements.”
The Green Party, unlike the Libertarians, is more concerned with protecting the environment, our nation’s responsibilities to the world, and, at least in Ohio, the creation of a state-managed health care system, none of which are particularly “small government” efforts, but are none-the-less worthy endeavors in the eyes of many voters. I don’t see either of the big-two parties making significant strides on any of those fronts, do you?
What it comes down to, for me, is if any minor party actually holds true to even half of what they say they believe in, they will be doing better than the Big Two, both of which I'm convinced are controlled entirely by corporate interests. I think it is critically important that we detach ourselves from the major parties and embrace ones such as these that have a lot less special interest baggage. Surely, every party has some bull in the closet (does anyone really believe in a “clean” politician?) but the smaller, less known, groups certainly have less than their Republican and Democrat counterparts. Whether you favor a larger or smaller government, more government programs or lower taxes, I’d like to urge you to consider any alternative to the Big Two.
References:
Election Day 2006
Written by David M. Hickerson
Originally Posted at tripwire.hickersonfamily.net/2006_1105.html
It has been a long time since I bothered to write an article here, huh? With life moving at an unprecedented pace of late, I simply haven’t had a whole lot of time to devote to Tripwire. That said, the election (coming up Tuesday) has me at attention and I wanted to write up a few complaints (and praises, if I think of any) on the subject.
There are four state issues I’d like to gripe about first:
Issue 2: State Constitution Amendment setting Ohio’s Minimum Wage to 6.85$ hourly.
I’m not technically against the idea of raising the minimum wage to 6.85$ per hour, but I will not be voting for it for a few reasons. Firstly, I do not feel that the state constitution is the right place for this sort of provision. As a law, I might consider voting for it, but the Constitution is simply not a document we should be changing on a regular basis. Secondly, albeit selfishly, I think that if 5.25$ per-hour workers get a 30% raise with no performance improvement, so should I. I think it is illogical to artificially increase or decrease anything, and particularly unfair to do so in the case of wages and compensation.
I could also go on about how I believe it can hurt the economy by stifling job creation, but that argument is old and everyone has heard it before so there is really no point in me harping on it endlessly.
Issue 3: State Constitution Amendment in favor of additional gambling establishments in Ohio, as well as apportioning some profits of same to certain educational programs.
I believe people should be allowed to do whatever they want with their hard-earned (or not so hard-earned, in certain cases) money, with exceptions for viewing of child porn, paying for sexual favors, or buying nuclear weapons. That said, I’m voting against this particular provision, again partly on the grounds that the state Constitution is a bad place for it, but also because I have little faith in the state’s ability, or willingness, to put the money into the coffers of the educational systems it claims this will help.
Issue 4: State Constitution Amendment that essentially banns smoking in most public places in Ohio.
Yet another proposed amendment to our state Constitution that simply doesn’t belong there. I happen to support business-owners’ rights to choose whether they will allow smoking within the walls of their establishments, as well as their patrons’ rights to purchase goods and services elsewhere. If it isn’t apparent, I will not be voting for this particular amendment, even though it clearly indicates that there are exceptions for most bars, bowling facilities, private residences, and bingo places. 4 Yep, bingo games are apparently an OK place to smoke – go figure.
Issue 5: Proposed Law that, interestingly, also attempts to ban smoking.
What the heck is going on here? Not only do we have a proposed amendment, but, in case that fails, a proposed law as well? I’m not voting for this one either. It is too prohibitive, not allowing nearly as many exempt places as the before-mentioned amendment, and I really think that non-smokers, with the exception of those who live with respiratory problems, are overreacting about the severity of the situation.
There are additional issues, local and otherwise, but I really can't go over each and every one of them, let alone my thoughts on each. For instance, there are over seventy issues in Hamilton County, where I live, so my commentary could last a hundred pages on that alone. Please visit your county's website if you want more information about the issues specific to your area, and don't be afraid to do a little research.
Now to the Governor’s race. Sure, we have 30-plus positions in the balance right now, but this is the only one I, or most people I’ve talked to, really care about. We have six candidates for governor: two “write-in” guys, two from the traditional “big” parties, one from the Green party and another from the Libertarians.
Write in candidates are obviously at a significant disadvantage because, like myself, many voters are bad with names, so they won’t remember them when they get to the ballot. Sure, we could write them down on a napkin, but then we'd probably just forget it at home or accidently take our grocery list instead. That is why, for the sake of my writing, I’m going to ignore them. I’m not saying you should do the same, but if I can’t remember their names long enough to switch from my internet browser to the window I’m typing in, I obviously don’t care enough to research them in significant detail, nor will the average voter. If your name isn’t at least on the ballot, you’re probably hopeless, sorry.
On the flip-side of the coin, we have the big battle between Republican Kenneth Blackwell, with running mate Thomas Raga, and the Democrat ticket favoring Ted Strickland and Lee Fisher. Neither of the big parties impress me, and everyone in the state likely knows everything they could possibly want to (and more) about them, so as far as I’m concerned these guys can blow smoke up each others’ rear-ends until the end of time – I will not vote for them, nor do I intend to spend any more time discussing them.
That leaves me with Green Party candidate Robert Fitrakis, with Anita Rios flying as wingman, or the Libertarians who have put forth Bill Peirce and Mark Noble. While the odds favor the Republican or Democrat candidates, I’m not the sort that feels like I’m wasting a vote if I go with a different party – instead, I feel as if I’m part of a growing “dissenting voice” within the nation that has become fed up with the Big Two. I don’t have to agree with every position that a party espouses for them to gain my vote, otherwise I’d be forced out of every election entirely, but I think both of these parties stand for change. Whether that is a good or bad thing is up to us to decide, but I think that change, in this case, is generally good.
For instance, the Guiding Principles of the Libertarian Party of Ohio:
1. Free and responsible people should be able to control their own lives without interference from the government.
2. Nobody spends somebody else's money as carefully as he spends his own.
3. What you own, you tend to take care of; what belongs to no one or everyone tends to fall into disrepair.
4. Government has nothing to give anybody except what it first takes from somebody. Remember, that a government that's big enough to give you everything you want, is also big enough to take away everything you have.
5. Sound policy requires that we consider long-term effects and all people, not simply short-term effects and a few people.
6. Liberty makes all the difference in the world.
Seems to me like a lot of people agree with the statements of the above six bullets, and sure, Republican candidates claim they are for smaller government too, but do we really believe that after six years of their dominance at the federal level? I don’t, and I’m not convinced of any Democrat’s claim on that either. The Libertarians certainly appear, at least on paper, to support smaller government and less “Imperial entanglements.”
The Green Party, unlike the Libertarians, is more concerned with protecting the environment, our nation’s responsibilities to the world, and, at least in Ohio, the creation of a state-managed health care system, none of which are particularly “small government” efforts, but are none-the-less worthy endeavors in the eyes of many voters. I don’t see either of the big-two parties making significant strides on any of those fronts, do you?
What it comes down to, for me, is if any minor party actually holds true to even half of what they say they believe in, they will be doing better than the Big Two, both of which I'm convinced are controlled entirely by corporate interests. I think it is critically important that we detach ourselves from the major parties and embrace ones such as these that have a lot less special interest baggage. Surely, every party has some bull in the closet (does anyone really believe in a “clean” politician?) but the smaller, less known, groups certainly have less than their Republican and Democrat counterparts. Whether you favor a larger or smaller government, more government programs or lower taxes, I’d like to urge you to consider any alternative to the Big Two.
References:
- Hamilton County's Candidates and Issues List
www.hamilton-co.org/boe/inputdata/candidateissues/G06CANISS.PDF - Libertarian Party of Ohio
www.lpo.org/ - Green Party of Ohio
www.ohiogreens.org/ - Ohio Election Website
www.sos.state.oh.us/sos/ElectionsVoter/CurrentElection.aspx?Section=1768