That time of year again. Time to vote. Time to blog about voting. From Northeast Olympia.
First up, we have Initiative Measure No. 1125. Not wanting to bind the hands of DOT to set tolls, and not wanting to kill light rail, and being generally skeptical of micromanaging how funding revenues are used, I’m voting no.
Next, Initiative Measure No. 1163. I voted no when this question was posed in 2008. The only thing that’s changed is there is even less money available to pay for training these independent contractors. If I had my druthers, many long term care workers would be state employees, and thereby trained. I’d also be down with paying more to contractees, and mandating training. But this hybrid bullshit makes me angry. And, again, this is terrible initiative fodder. So, no.
I bemoaned the idiocy of the proponents of 2010′s Initiatives 1100 and 1105 in confusing the issues with two similar but not identical measures. And I suppose part of me was concerned about both those Initiatives’ impact on the bottom line, tax wise. Initiative Measure No. 1183. seems to solve those problems. I’m not sure why, but I really get my blood boiling at the position of the “preserve the status quo” crowd. Of course the State shouldn’t run liquor stores. The very idea is insane, what with retail liquor being just about the most perfectly suited industry suited to the Invisible Hand if there ever was one. State-run retail clothing stores make more sense, because at least then perhaps we’d see women’s clothing lines come out of the Dark Ages by requiring actual measurements, and we might be able to curb the incidence of child labor in clothing manufacturing. But liquor? Nigga, please. So, yes on 1183.
Senate Joint Resolution No. 8205 appears to be primarily concerned with removing surplusage from the State Constitution. Noble goal. Approved.
Revenue spikes being diverted to the rainy day fund? That’s the topic of Senate Joint Resolution No. 8206. Where “spike” means “growth in general sate revenue that is more than one-third greater than the” “average biennial percentage growth in the general state revenues over the preceding five biennia.” Sounds like a good idea to me. Might prevent budgets from being based upon unrealistic numbers. Approved.
George L. Barner, Jr. is running unopposed for Port Commissioner District No. 1, so I’m not bothering to vote for this position.
City of Olympia Mayor, on the other hand, has Stephen Buxbaum and Dick Pust. I warmed on came-in-third-during-the-primary-and-so-is-no-longer-on-the-ballot Karen Rogers over the years, most recently when she attended a Stonewall Youth event. I’m not much of a Buxbaum fan, but I like Pust even less. So, reluctantly, Buxbaum.
As a small-r republican and criminal defense attorney–dealing frequently with, shall we say, a class of very poor decisionmakers–I despise the idea of direct democracy. Thus, Democritus Blantayre, the self-proclaimed “anti-politician,” sort of running for City Council Position No. 2 is out. And Steve Langer is in.
Rhenda Iris Strub came to my door and asked me to vote for her for Position No. 3. Nathanial Jones did not. Both candidates seem just fine, if unexceptional. So, Strub.
Position No. 7 has Brian Tomlinson, who seems proud of his refusal to participate in the political process. He doesn’t seek newspaper endorsements, participate in candidate surveys, or create campaign literature. Another anti-candidate, along the lines of Position 2′s Blantayre? Sort of. I can at least grasp what someone like Blantayre is trying to accomplish. But Tomlinson is more of an Outsider without a Cause. Unfortunate. So although I’m not entirely on board with TOGETHER!–the nonprofit for which opponent Jim Cooper is executive director–because of its “youth shouldn’t experiment with alcohol and other recreational drugs” stance, I suppose he’ll do.
All of the School Board Director District candidates are running unopposed. And I won’t stand in their way.
I’m of mixed thoughts about Proposition No. 1, which bans fireworks within City limits. On the one hand, I’m sort of sympathetic to the idea that fireworks are needlessly dangerous, especially in an uncontrolled, relatively urban setting. On the other hand, I hope to one day blow shit up legally with a small male child. Thus, no.