Dear Friends;
As we come down to the wire on tomorrow’s June 8, 2010 election, we’ve seen enormous amounts of money being spent on ballot measures that will have a significant impact on the future of our state.
With a wide-range of issues at stake– from the conducting of elections to how we get our electricity, we want to make sure you have the real, unbought, objective analysis and suggestions of a progressive point-of-view on these issues.
______________________________
For those who live in Santa Barbara County, and in Carpinteria, specifically, this election will determine whether another oil company is going to be able to get around existing laws for its own financial benefit and at the expense of the quality of life and protection of our coast. Measure J is a bald-faced attempt by VENECO oil company to circumvent existing environmental and land-use laws to allow drilling for as long as the company wants and in any manner they want. Hard-to-believe, but true.
But they’re not alone, there are two other initiatives that are also for the benefit of multi-million dollar corporations—again at the expense of you and me, the public. Prop. 16 (the PG&E monopoly and anti-green energy initiative) has been purchased by PG&E for over $40 Million. We must beat that back and tell PG&E that they can’t subvert democracy, energy independence and consumer protections.
The same is true for Prop. 17–which Mercury Insurance has funded, almost as exclusively as PG&E has done with 16), in order for it to be able to make huge profits,.
The single element that is so interesting is that these measures claim to be exactly the opposite of what they are. WE NEED TO SAY NO TO 16 and 17.
Prop. 14, the “open primary” initiative forces candidates to raise huge amounts of cash to campaign to all of the voters in the state. This potentially seals the deal that campaigns require wealthy candidates or corporate sponsorship.
On the other hand, Prop. 15, “public financing,” helps candidates from all walks of life run a campaign that can reach the public without depending on funding from wealthy or corporate interests.
So I want to make sure you’re aware of this year’s Speak Out California Voter Guide which covers the five statewide initiatives on the ballot.
In the guide please note the various recommendations from seven of the state’s leading non-partisan and progressive groups, in addition to the recommendations of Speak Out California, which are:
Proposition 13, the Earthquake Retrofit Property Tax initiative: No position.
Proposition 14, the “Kill the Parties Initiative”: NO
Proposition 15, the “End Corporate Financed Elections Initiative”: YES
Proposition 16, the “PGE Initiative”: NO
Proposition 17, the “Mercury Insurance Initiative”: NO
Thank you ,
Hannah-Beth Jackson