I heard an excellent commentary on the radio during the morning comute today.
To recap: The economy of California is in a terrible state and people are consequently unhappy with the govenor. Ok so far as he is the figurehead, but CA has a rule that says they can hold a recall 'election' if they get enough signatures, but the new 'election' is open to anyone who can stump up $3500. There are two questions (1) should the present govenor be recalled? and (2) which 'candidate' should replace him? If the answer to (1) is yes, then the person with the most votes gets to be the new govenor...of California...the fifth largest economy in the world.
Bear in mind that the curent guvenor hasn't done anything illegal, they just have a crappy economy.
To commentator noted that the list of contestants (sorry, candidates) include an actor, a pornogropher, a porn star, and so on, none of whom have any real experience in running a state government. He suggested that this wasn't really the type of job where you'd want someone learning as they go. In fact the only one on the ballot with any experience was the man they were trying to recall.
He also noted that about the only person who wasn't on the ballot was the man who started it all, a man who spent three million bucks of his own money to get the signatures and then at the last minute bowed out "crying like a little girl who'd been bought a new dress only to be told she couldn't go to the party". A little harsh perhaps, but still, he started it.
I thought it was an interesting perspective and highlighted what seemed to be a crazy situation. The election will probably cost about $66,000,000, an amount which could be used for something better and will also distract the current administration.
Does anyone else think this is the matinee act at the theatre of the absurd? or am I missing something?
Apparently there are currently over 130 candidates for the job. Gray Davis has seemingly really messed up California's economy - nobody else is being blamed. The seriousness will come from which party wins the state as there are a tremendous amount of votes in the state effecting the electoral college from a national perspective.
Well, you've got to start somewhere - what I really like is the draw they have to decide on the order of the electoral alphabet ... apparently the name at the top of the ballot paper is reckoned to have a 5% advantage, so they have a public draw of all the letters of the alphabet and decide which names come top .... or something like that
Whatever happened to the Monster Raving Looney Party? They'd be right at home here, man. Correct me if I'm wrong but we always had a bunch of looneys put themselves forward for elections in England. Talk is that the voting machines here won't be able to handle the number of candidates. Designed by folks that said "That will never happen". Anyway, my money's on Ahhnold unless he has a hanging chad problem
I may be wrong, but after the death of Screaming Lord Sutch, a cat is now the leader of the Monster Raving Loony Party. No sign of them when I was out campaigning in May. Shame. They used to be good for a laugh. We had a local independent candidate called Patrice - a transvestite hairdresser. He didn't win, but got the biggest cheer from all the major parties at the declaration.
I heard on the BBC that the winning candidate in California might only have to poll 15% of the vote. What a mandate that would be.
I think its a fine idea getting the politicians out of politics, all we need then is to get the lawyers out of the law and we are on our way to utopia.
NEWS FLASH - CAT MANDU (JOINT LEADER OF THE OMRLP) FOUND DEAD
It's another sad day for Loonies all over the world as news has just come in of the death of Official Monster Raving Loony Party Joint Leader, Cat Mandu.
Discovered this morning apparently involved in a road traffic accident and pronounced dead at the scene the ginger and white high powered pussy will be missed by members of the OMRLP and residents of Yateley, Hampshire where he has lived with joint lead Alan Hope since moving from the Devon town of Ashburton a few years ago.
The cat with ambitions to become the official House of Commons rat catcher has ended his days as another road death statistic and has lead to renewed calls from Loony Party activists to introduce Cat crossings on main roads so that cats have the same chance of crossing the road as pelicans and Zebras.
Mandu will be missed and it's a fitting tribute that his last official duty at the birthday party of Alan Hope was filmed by the people from the telly and should be broadcast in the near future.
I think the primary reason for the excessive number of candidates on the ballot is purely a California quirk. The election laws of 1911 or 1901 stae that you only need something like $65 and 3500 signatures to get your name on a ballot for govenor. Only in CA would this law still be in effect. It's also the only state where they capped the cost of residential electricity by gave the providers no way to recover higher expenses,. California, when will they ceceded from the Union
Might have been on PPRuNe I first spotted this, anyway...
Quote:
Earlier in the week, I was at a pre-election Hustings meeting here. The Loony candidate had changed his name by deed poll to Flash Gordon Approaching. A young woman stood up and said 'For every pound a man earns, a woman earns eighty-one pence....what do the candidates' manifestos have to say about that?'
FGA was given the mike to reply first. With no hesitation he observed 'For every pound a man earns, the woman spends one pound twentyfive...'
Wither the Californian election?
