Obligatory voting post

[ellid]

I won't be voting early because a) I'm going to be in town, and b) Easthampton uses optical scan ballots, not those horrid touch screen things, and the polls are staffed by volunteers from the League of Women Voters. I think I'm pretty safe from votescams, thank goodness. I will be voting *early*, though, since I intend to vote before I go into work that day.

As for how I'm voting:

President: Obama/Biden. The closest I ever came to voting Republican for President was John Anderson back in 1980, and at this point the only way I ever will vote Republican for President is if they take the anti-abortion language out of the platform and go back to old-style fiscal conservatism. Since that doesn't look very likely, I'm left with the donkeys, as flawed as the Democratic Party is. *sigh*

Senator: John Kerry. He's been a decent senator for lo these many, and with Ted Kennedy's health so questionable I see no reason to dump someone with his credentials and seniority.

Representative: John Olver. Yes, he's a cranky old chemistry professor, but by God he's *our* cranky old chemistry professor who drives his own Toyota Camry around the district. I hope he never retires.

State Rep: John Scibak. He's strongly pro-gay rights and overall very progressive, and he answers his own e-mail!

State Senator: alas, Mike Knapik, the entrenched voice of Westfield, is running unopposed. I stopped rubber-stamping him when he voted for the anti-gay marriage petition a few years ago, and I see no reason to resume rubber-stamping him now that the gay marriage issue is settled. :(

Question #1: NO NO NO NO. It would repeal the state income tax effective January 9, 2009, which would cut state revenues by 40%. It's a terribly written law, mean-spirited, and would gut social services, public safety, and pretty much everything except absolutely essential services, with no transitional period. It would throw thousands of people out of work, shut medical clinics, and generally create chaos.

Question #2: a tentative yes. This would drastically reduce penalties for first-time arrests for marijuana possession and would basically decriminalize small amounts of personal pot. I don't use pot myself and never have, but it strikes me as ridiculous to allow tobacco (which killed two of my relatives) and alcohol (which kills or maims at an appalling rate) while giving people a criminal record for having a joint. I'm still undecided, though.

Question #3: yes. This would close the state's two greyhound tracks. A no-brainer.

Comments

[girlygothic.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the post... Reminds me that I need to figure out all of what will be on my ballot and make my decisions.

Not meaning to pick a fight or anything, but figuring that since you posted you'd be up for rational debate...

I'm currently leaning towards No on Question 3. My initial gut reaction was a Yes. But then a friend commented that shutting down an industry (and eliminating jobs, in this economy) just because of potential for abuse isn't fair. His analogy was that it would be like outlawing bars because fights could happen there. Of course, the problem with all ballot questions is that they never allow the "No, but you should do this instead" option. In that case I'd want to say "No, but you should increase penalties for animal abuse and crack down on violators."

But then, all of the above is still tentative, pending me finding opportunity to talk to a friend of mine who is an SPCA cop to see what he has to say on the subject.

[ellid.livejournal.com]

Oh, I agree that shutting down the tracks won't be easy for the people who work there...but I've heard too many stories about the conditions the dogs live in to want to keep the tracks. The question also includes a two year phase-out for the industry should it pass, which at least allows for the workers to find new jobs and the dogs to find homes.

BTW, the MSPCA itself is asking for a Yes (http://www.mspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=adv_greyhounds) vote on the question. Let me know what your friend thinks - it would be good to get an insider's view.

[orphandani.livejournal.com]

Take it from someone who works animal rescue... CLOSE DOWN THOSE TRACKS. Please. Most of the rescued Greyhounds we get are underweight, have never walked on anything but cement or the track surface, have never lived in an area larger than a cage just barely large enough for them to stretch out in. It's awful.

[ladyaelfwynn.livejournal.com]

Pot is one of those drugs that gets treated unfairly.

Before I went to grad school, I worked cataloguing a collection that focused on drug abuse treatment and treatment evaluation. I indexed over 3000 articles/books/white papers and wrote abstracts for about half of them.

What I took away from that was that tobacco and alcohol were way worse than pot. Tobacco would kill you with carcinogens and alcohol would rot your liver and brain, and depending on how one drank might kill with alcohol poisoning, or through something like drunk driving. This doesn't even begin to cover the interpersonal issues of dealing with a drunkard.

Personal experience taught me that I have more to fear from a drunk man and one who's stoned.

I really think pot ought to be decriminalized at the least, if not out and out legalized.

(IIRC, part of the reason it was criminalized had something to do with the rope trade early last century, not because of its intoxicating effects.)

[girlygothic.livejournal.com]

I've heard the same thing about the rope trade.

It's so stupid/annoying too, as hemp is a lovely fiber.

[ellid.livejournal.com]

And it has such a distinctive smell when one does the burn test, or so alphasarah has said.

[musikologie.livejournal.com]

I thought you meant greyhound as in buses, which confused me to no end.

The only proposition on New York's ballot, as far as I can tell, is one to give veterans care and support even if they aren't registered with the federal department (there was a lot of federal/legal speak to wade through). Which, um, duh.

[ellid.livejournal.com]

Actually, I could see Peter Pan trying to do this so they'd have a monopoly on state bus traffic....

[prince-hring.livejournal.com]

And that gave me the "brain speed-bump", 'cause we Canadians view Peter Pan as the boy who never grew up... not a bus line. Sigh.

[fitzw.livejournal.com]

I won't be voting early because a) I'm going to be in town, and b) Easthampton uses optical scan ballots, not those horrid touch screen things, and the polls are staffed by volunteers from the League of Women Voters. I think I'm pretty safe from votescams, thank goodness. I will be voting *early*, though, since I intend to vote before I go into work that day.

Ha, got you beat: Ashfield uses paper ballots where you mark your vote with an 'X' using a #2 pencil.

[ellid.livejournal.com]

Seriously? Good heavens, I didn't know such places still existed.

[fitzw.livejournal.com]

Seriously. I suspect that the hassle of going to more technological solution is not considered to be worth it.

[prince-hring.livejournal.com]

I just participated in our Federal election.

The ballot was easy: a list of names, pick one...

...by putting an "X" in the circle using a #2 pencil.

Yes, places like that still exist.

[tena524.livejournal.com]

What can I tell you, the state capitol of NH is just as behind the times...