OK, most people are focusing on Terminator jokes when it comes to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s candidacy, but I’m reminded of the “Conan the Librarian” sketch from UHF.
“Uh, this budget is a little overdue.”
“Ovah-doo? HYAAARGH!” (Cleaves the hapless legislator in half with his sword.)
One things that’s bugged me since the start of the effort to recall Governor Davis is that people keep bringing up the budget crisis.
Repeat after me: The Legislature chooses the budget, not the Governor.
Recalling the governor because the legislature can’t get its act together is like firing your plumber because your electrician screwed up.
Of course it’s all tied up in partisan politics. Some people just want a Republican governor, and are using the budget as an excuse. (Anyone remember the regular budget impasses during Pete Wilson’s administration in the early 1990s? This is not unique to Gray Davis!) Some people just want to throw someone out, and it’s less effort to kick out one governor than 100+ legislators.
But the budget crisis is all about party infighting. The Democrats have rallied behind tax increases, the Republicans have rallied behind spending cuts, and neither side will budge.
If these people would just stop fighting over who was a Democrat and who was a Republican, maybe they’d actually get some work done.
For several years now (before the 2000 Presidential election, but even more strongly after that), I’ve been of the opinion that allowing people to mark a 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice on each ballot would effectively resolve the “lesser of two evils” problem that limits us to the Republicans and Democrats as the only viable political parties.
(For the record, since I was first eligible to vote, I’ve registered with a “decline to state” affiliation because I prefer to be associated with neither right-wing wackos nor left-wing wackos. I usually consider myself a moderate, but in today’s political climate what I consider moderate looks extremely liberal by comparison.)
The last two big elections, Bush vs. Gore for President and Davis vs. Simon for California governor, were both cases where I didn’t particularly like one candidate but really disliked the other. Continue reading
On the same corner where a few weeks ago someone had placed “Atomic X For Governor” signs, Katie and I saw a new parody. There’s a candidate in a local election named Brett Floyd, and someone had gotten neon pink cardboard and written up a “Vote Pink Floyd” sign.
For once we actually had a camera in the car, but couldn’t get it out fast enough.
Update November 7!
We got a photo on Saturday, and finally got the pictures back! It was too blurry to read, so it’s overly processed, but here it is:
