Cal Prop Lunacy

Here's the wrap on the California's propositions, and it's not hot. Arnold Schwarzenegger's after-school fitness boondoggle (Prop 49) passed easily; and in a demonstration of Reason's influence on political affairs, 58% of Golden State voters were unpersuaded by our argument against Prop 47, the massive public school bond issue. More of my tax dollars will be spent pretending to build battered women shelters (Prop 46) and filter water (Prop 50), and my car registration fees (Prop 51) can continue to be used for whatever "general fund" needs Gray Davis sees fit. Amazingly, Prop 52, which would have allowed same-day voter registration, was soundly defeated—61% to 39%. The explanation for that was that we don't want to take a chance on voter fraud, which makes a lot of sense, because the system is quite fraud-proof now; when I registered to vote through the mail, Elections Commission officers came to my place of residence to verify my credentials, check my passport and administer a lie detector test. Any Propositions not mentioned here I just didn't understand.

San Francisco voters did slightly better, defeating for the umpteenth time Pravda's campaign for public electricity, and passing the pro-weed Prop S. (Sadly, pot didn't do so well in the Silver State.) And Berkeley dumped the politically correct coffee campaign, probably the dumbest measure on ballots anywhere in the country.