Dear Editor,
They’re trying to fool us again! They did it before when Big Oil convinced us that gas prices would go up if we, the people of California, approved taxing any oil that comes out of the ground. All the other states do, why not us? I’ve heard that Alaskan residents even get royalties from the oil companies to do so. Now they (Mercury Insurance and others), with State Measure 17, want to mess with how auto insurance is provided. I have no doubt that it will provide them bigger profits and allow them to raise rates and deny coverage to many (and do some “cherry picking” just as the health companies have been doing and failing at).
With State Measure 13 (like the old Proposition 13 that has caused the state to go broke) they want to limit tax assessments on buildings that get improvements to strengthen them against earthquakes. I have no doubt that any and all future improvement will qualify as such retrofitting and save large corporations millions and cost us the same amount. What we need is to repeal or fix the old Proposition 13 and/or change the voting requirements for a balanced state budget (to a simple majority).
And with State Measure 14 they want to eliminate political primaries and just vote in those who get the highest votes. This could eliminate each of the parties ability to decide who they want in their party to run for office; it would split the vote so greatly that it is unlikely that anyone would get much of a majority vote (and create problems they just had in England).
Finally, the electric companies want to improve their monopolies and hamper the right of local governments to create their own electric company with State Measure 16 (this will no doubt enable them to force rates up even more); how dare they mess with my city government (it’s probably unconstitutional anyway). So, vote NO on 13, 14, 16 and 17.
The only one good for We, the People, is State Measure 15, which gives us another chance to have public financing for political offices. Only with overall public financing will we eliminate the corruption of candidates and office holders (they can’t help it) and the control of big corporations from controlling our government and lives. Vote YES on 15!
Brian V.W. Pogue
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