On Local Government
Ballot propositions: Part I – 19, 20, and 21 ‘Tis the season for California voters to cast their ballots on items they usually spend way too little time researching. These are the biennial initiatives and constitutional amendments presented to the voters because some special interest was forced, by law, to ask permission. (Otherwise, the Legislature would either accept of reject these in the last furious days of a session, thus making most of them unnoticed by the general public.) There are nine measures on the ballot this time, so I thought I’d divide them into three parts and provide you with my take on them, for whatever you might think of that’s worth. Proposition 19: Legalizing marijuana It is the great dilemma of public policy to try to determine how far a society must go to protect people from themselves. The illegal use of marijuana is relatively widespread, depending on which set of experts you believe. There is also considerable difference of opinion about its effects on individuals and society. Marijuana growing areas in northern California are becoming a battleground of Bulgarian and Russian gangs looking to get a piece of the illegal trade. And, local governments…
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