Governor: Phil Angelides. Sure, Phil
Angelides’ gigantic ears and elfin grin don’t quite
stack up to the chiseled chin of the Gubernator. But he has a
vision. While Schwarzenegger has spent the last months
shape-shifting from a regressive Republican into a more palatable
moderate, Angelides has been fighting for progressive values since
the Nixon administration. His values are clear and progressive. He
believes in providing the middle class and the poor with all the
opportunities they need to succeed. This belief is backed by sound
policy. He wants to cut taxes on the middle class and small
businesses. He wants to invest in education by improving school
counseling and outreach programs to ensure that disadvantaged
students can get into college. He’ll roll back UC fees, which
Arnold raised last year. Schwarzenegger, on the other hand, has no
vision. He vetoed the minimum wage hike twice before turning around
and signing it. He’s merely an actor, trying to play the role
that Californians will like best. Vote for Angelides. He’s
the real deal.
Proposition 87: Yes. As we run out of
oil in the coming years, prices for gasoline and petroleum-based
energy will rise, placing a heavy burden on our economy and
motorists. What’s worse, we’ll be dependent on
countries such as Iran and Venezuela for that pricey black gold.
Proposition 87 will get the ball rolling on the development of
alternative fuels so we’ll have domestic sources of energy
when foreign oil becomes too expensive. Energy companies are
already working on alternatives, but they aren’t doing it
fast enough. Since they’re making vast profits from oil
today, they need bigger incentives to plan for the future.
Proposition 87 will provide these incentives. The proposition
levies a small extraction fee on producers of oil extracted in
California. The fee will fund incentives for companies to start
building alternatives like ethanol-powered cars and ethanol gas
stations today, so they’ll be ready before we run out of oil.
The proposition also funds research at universities to make energy
alternatives more economically viable. Opponents of the proposition
say the tax will raise gas prices, but they simply haven’t
looked at the facts. States such as Montana, Louisiana and Kansas
all have higher fees than the one presented in Proposition 87, and
they all have cheaper gas than we do in California.
Proposition 89: Yes. Every citizen
should have an equal say in our elections. That principle is a
foundation of our democracy, but unfortunately, it is one that is
rarely realized. Money, not votes, is the determining factor in
modern elections. Elections cost money. A lot of it. Over $92
million has been contributed to the gubernatorial race this year.
This money funds press events, TV ads and campaign staffers who
help candidates get their message across. Unfortunately, the rich
and special interests can contribute more to their candidates than
the poor and middle class can to theirs. The result is, sadly, less
exposure for candidates whose ideas challenge those of the rich and
special interests. Proposition 89 would create a fund that would
allow candidates without wealthy backers to finance their
campaigns. It would also lower the amount that corporations could
contribute to political campaigns. Doing so will level the playing
field. Candidates will be able to present their ideas, regardless
of the wealth of their contributors. A democratic exchange of
ideas, instead of a contributor’s checkbook, will begin to
characterize California elections.