Simon, Paul, and I penned a letter urging a YES vote on the Constitutional Convention.
We have been looking forward to a convention for maybe ten years. I hoped for a definition of "sound, basic education" and some truly forward-thinking school funding plans. Paul wanted to rid the state of the millions of dollars of waste caused by antique regulations. Simon had a vision of cleaning up Albany using a bulldozer instead of a blindfold and tweezers.
This year's "NO" brigade has been a solemn reminder of what the age of social media hath wrought: No thinking, just a lot of heat spread like lightning at the click of a button. Shame on public union leadership, which struck fear into members' hearts with threats of a disappearing pension when pensions have been disappearing since Tier 1 morphed into 2, and 3, and 4... and 7. Shame on organizations like NYCLU, who pretend to push until push comes to shove and they get cold feet and decide to stick with the devil they know. (Whoa, block that idiom!) Shame on anyone who mistook the Kochs' desire for a US ConCon for our own 20-year state vote, usually through application of poor reading skills and a desire to jump on any progressive-sounding bandwagon that would have him or her. Shame on everybody who pushed bullshit propaganda like the canard about "no vote equals a yes vote!" Shame on our elected officials for pretending that their despotic, restrictive means of putting amendments on the ballot is in any way good for the People of NY. Shame on New Yorkers who are appalled by the state of the state but use magical thinking to assume that the state can fix itself if only we squeeze our eyes shut and just... believe.
We are outnumbered, at least on the IJ editorial page and in the signs and messages we see. Enjoy the next 20 years, NY. We don't intend to stick around much longer to see the mess you've made.
I am still trying to understand...at least one national environmental group is urging a NO vote because they see a strong threat to the "Forever Wild" clause in the constitution. This could have a huge effect on the Adirondacks in particular. Another question on the ballot addresses small projects needed for health and safety; these are on lands designated wild, and voting for this would not threaten larger, protected areas. Evidently regional environmental groups support this last one. What do you think about a YES vote in terms of safeguarding NY State's wild areas?
ReplyDeleteI think that Forever Wild came about through a Convention, not via legislation. And legislation has been chipping away at it ever since, despite environmental groups' okay. I will vote YES on Prop. 3, but it's just one more example of Forever Wild Lite.
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