My Florida election ballot arrived. And after studying it, I can tell you it is really disgusting. Bunch of tea bag and GOP initiatives. Really pisses me off.
I have been voting through absentee ballot ever since those issues with Florida touch screen machines popped up. I think by now, since Florida actually went for Obama in 2008, I could trust those machines and vote in person but don't know if I have to cancel the ballot or just go and vote in person.
Never mind. What I wanted to talk about is what I just discovered is on the ballot. Bunch of crap. I like Miami, it is a nice city and most of my friends are liberals while some are Republicans, although I do not talk politics with them, because I can't. If I do and say what I mean, I will lose them as friends. But I say a little bit here and there.
So, Miami is okay, but unfortunately it belongs to a red f-ing state.
So first and forement, let me tell you that there is Rubio as the first candidate on the first page on the leftmost column, followed by Meek and then a bunch of other candidates and among them in the 9th position is Charlie Crist.
Now let's go to those ballot initiatives. Some of them have questions such as "Shall justice James E C Perry of the supreme Court be retained in office?"
Well, that sounds like an interesting question. I went and googled for his name and that of another justice "Labarga" that we need to "retain" and learned that these items are on the ballot courtesy of a tea bag party inititiave. The tea baggers want to unseat Florida Supreme Court Justices Labarga and Perry because of their vote in the recent decision removing Amendment 9 (ban federal laws that require Floridians to participate in a health insurance plan) from the ballots in Florida.
http://www.polklawblog.com/...
and
http://www.miamiherald.com/...
What is it with these tea baggers that they have so much power to get ballot initatives passed such as these ones? I asked a friend and she said it's because the churches help to organize this initiatives during Sunday mass. She knows because she worked with a church administration several years ago. She told me it's much easier that way, plus the church sometimes get money from corporations (as do the tea baggers). And she said, now imagine two progressives standing at Publix supermarket entrance and asking for signatures for a liberal cause... good luck with that. Maybe it would work in Miami Beach, but I don't think I have ever seen progressives organizing for ballot initiatives in Florida. We need more progressive chuches!
Anyways, I digress, because there is more.
There is also a judge we have to "retain", his name is "Frank A Shepherd" and after googling for his name I learn that as recently as Sept 23 2010, this judge determined that the Florida ban on gay adoption is unconstitutional!!!
Here is a very nice story about it:
http://www.miamiherald.com/...
Now, I don't see any information on a particular initiative to remove this judge but I am very suspicious and while I hope he stays, I worry about all the enthusiastic Florida rightwingers who will vote and I know how they will vote once they find out about his ruling.
Finally there is another amendment that hits close to home and that I know was promoted by the asinine Republicans in Florida's congress:
An increase in the class size restrictions, from 18 students to 21 pre-K to 3rd grade, 22 to 27 for 4th to 8th grades, and 25 to 30 for 9 through 12 grades.
Republicans don't care about public education, we know that, as long as their own kids go to private "Christian" school or are homeschooled with the bible, all other kids can just go to hell. Well my daughter goes to public school and I am very pissed that it is in the ballot. I hope it gets defeated.