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March 2004

Here’s the March 2004 edition of the “Dad Guide to Elections,” long awaited after a two year hiatus. Working our way down the Democratic Primary ballot, starting with President:

President

Well, the family consensus is to vote for Kucinich. We all want someone to make W a jobless statistic, and probably the best bet to make that happen now is Kerry. On the other hand, Kerry will take California anyway, so we might as well give Kucinich a few more votes, and maybe even another delegate. Somebody has to carry the flag in to the mass of wimpy Dems who can figure out they have to talk and act different than Republicans.

US Senator

Not a lot of choice here. It will have to be Boxer, since there are no other candidates on the list. Of course, when November comes, it will still have to be Boxer because we don’t want any more Republican troglodytes in the Senate. Still, we wish that she were a nicer person and could stand up for the gay marriage issue better than she has.

Congress

Anna Eshoo. She’s OK, except she has a very hard time knowing when to stop talking. At least she’s solid on the right issues, though she wimps out on high tech corporate party lines for expensing stock options.

State Senator

This is a tough one and an ugly dishonest campaign. The choice is between Dumb and Dumber. On the one hand we have Alquist, a former Republican who has not been terribly effective as a Democratic Assemblywoman, but who has rounded up a jillion endorsements and has been polluting our mailbox with far too many mailers. All slogans, no substance. Then there is Manny Diaz, who is a couple of cans short of a six-pack, and has also been jamming the mailbox with mailers and endorsement. And finally Jose Medeiros. Nope, nothing there.

Rule of thumb about advertising: the more there is, the less there is to distinguish between the commodities. I think that’s what we have here. In the end, we get an ordinary Democrat who will vote with the pack and never stand out with creativity, leadership or effectiveness. I guess the good news is that who ever wins the primary wins the general, so we won’t have to go through this race again.

So who to vote for? The Alquist campaign is very annoying, but she is more acquainted with our end of the district. Manny is more San Jose-oriented, but he has picked up the ball on state budget issues, and has been endorsed by the Democratic Party. I’ll probably go with Manny, but with very little enthusiasm. It hurts, though—Diaz didn’t even put a ballot statement in the book, which violates one of the principles of the Dad Guide.

State Assembly

Only choice we have is Sally Lieber. Oh dear. Could be worse—we could be represented by Rebecca Cohn. At least we have not been plagued by her mail during this campaign like her first race two years ago.

County Democratic Committee

These are the people who really enjoy the boring details of local party politics, and I suspect they none of them is fun on the bus. The Democratic version of the Republican weenies. And we get to vote for six! The only name I recognize is Aldyth Parle, who is on the Santa Clara City Council. I think she’s OK. Abramowitz had a strange email altercation with one of my coworkers, and she sent a scary campaign letter—Scary because she actually sent one, the first time I recall getting such a thing, and scary because of how it looked. This is a race we can probably skip—no real impact on legislation or candidates as far as I can tell.

Superior Court, Office 7

Not much info here. Colin has decent endorsements, including the Mercury, but his ballot statement is pretty thin. On the other hand, his principal opponent, Griffin, is endorsed by all the police associations. The third candidate has nothing specific in his statement. I will go with the Dad Guide principle here, and go with Colin.

Superior Court, Office 18

I guess I will go with Guerrero-Daley, but not with enthusiasm. She has been San Jose’s police auditor for many years, which means she tries to keep the cops in line and sort out complaints. She has done OK with that, but I’ve seen her in action too many times where she has been less than impressive in the sharpness department. She can’t explain her way out of a bag. Don’t know Monahan one way or the other. Mercury endorsed Guerrero-Daley.

Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors

Again, an incumbent with no opposition. And the county really needs new people on the board. McHugh is OK, heart in the right place, not to sure how bright he really is. At least he had the decency to put a ballot statement in even when he is unopposed. In the end it doesn’t matter—his is the only name on the ballot.

Santa Clara Valley Water District

I guess the incumbent is OK, but Santos is the only name on the ballot. The District board has not been terribly effective in making decisions or minding the store for good management.

State Ballot Measures

55

School bonds.
Yes. This is a case where borrowing makes sense, because it’s like a mortgage on the house. Long-term beneficiaries pay the long-term benefit.

56

Reduce 2/3 Requirement for Legislature to approve state budget.
Yes yes yes. Long overdue. California is one of only three states that requires more than a simple majority to approve the budget each year. This is completely nuts, and gives the Reeps veto power over the whole state. Even Congress only requires a simple majority. Why should one no vote equal two yes votes.

57

58

These are a package deal. The $15 billion bond to borrow money to pay the current budget gap, and a vague promise to have a spending cap in the future. This is like a mortgage for your groceries. I prefer the Phil Angelides proposal: increase the income tax to the same level it was under Republican Governors Wilson and Reagan, which mean higher incomes pay more, and bring back the car tax, which means the people with big expensive cars pay more. All of a sudden we would not have to mortgage the next 10 years to pay for crappy Legislative and Governor decisions. I guess I say No, even though it will mean wholesale and severe budget ugliness for the state and cities this year, because Cigarboy and the legislators would rather pull the plug on poor people, students, and libraries before restoring historic and long acceptable levels of taxes on people who can and should afford to pay them.

Regional Ballot Measure

2

Increase bridge tolls to pay for transit.
Yes. Makes sense to me. Next sensible thing would be to increase the gas tax. It won’t happen, but it should. Users should pay when we have the mechanism to do it, and to make people aware of the real costs of transportation and roads and cars. Look at the opponents—Libertarians, Taxpayers’ Association—and they even said the League of Women Voters has been corrupted by it. On the yes side, my mayor, Greenbelt Alliance, and even the Bicycle Coalition (though Stallman is definitely not fun on the bus)

County Ballot Measure

A

This would place the Juvenile Justice system under the control of the County Board of Supervisors rather than the judges. Everyone agrees the current system is a mess, kids are not served, and there doesn’t seem to be much accountability. The judges are sounding very defensive. On the other hand, the County Board is not terrific either. I’ll say Yes, because at least the Board is more likely to be responsive to the public.