1. "We've got a mayoral, city council, and three huge city questions" In response to Reply # 0
Mayor Jacob Frey got national attention after the George Floyd Uprising here in Minneapolis. Progressive-minded folks want him gone. I saw him as a disaster before he even got elected. But if the polling it to be believed, he will likely win a second term. We've got ranked choice voting and I won't be putting his name on my ballot.
Our city questions are what a lot of the people's attention is focused on.
Question one is the "strong mayor" question. Our city as a "weak" mayor in that the city council is just as powerful -- we have an executive council. So the question is asking if we should give the mayor more power (think Cuomo) and weaken the city council.
Question two is the "defund the police" question. It's not that, but that's how it's being framed. It is asking if we should amend he city charter to allow us to replace the Minneapolis Police Department with a Department of Public Safety which the police would be placed underneath. As it stands, MPD is under the purview of the mayor, this would change that, making them and the entire Dept of Public Safety (which would include social workers, addiction specialists, etc.) under the jurisdiction of Mayor and City Council.
Question three is the "rent control" question. It asks if we will give the City Council the authority to regulate rent prices.
--
"You can't beat white people. You can only knock them out."
2. "Texas Statewide Proposals" In response to Reply # 0
I always worry what the real motive is for some proposals. Some read as not being a big deal but then you find out it gets used down the road for something bad. I don't have any offices on my ballot just the Statewide Proposals
State Prop 1: Yes Authorizes raffles at rodeos, currently prohibited by Texas anti-gambling laws. Why not.
State Prop 2: Yes Allows counties to issue bonds to improve blighted areas. Cities and towns can do this already. Counties need the same authority.
State Prop 3: No If passed, would prohibit restrictions on religious gatherings even during a deadly pandemic or other emergency. This is an incredibly dangerous proposal - blanket exemption from rules intended to protect the lives and health of citizens is not a First Amendment guarantee.
State Prop 4: No Would make it harder for younger, more diverse candidates to become judges in Texas by strengthening requirements. This is a Republican reaction to more Democratic or progressive lawyers beating GOP candidates in recent years in urban counties.
State Prop 5: No Gives the State Commission on Judicial Conduct authority over judicial candidates. In theory, this could be useful reform, but in practice, it would give those in power more control over judicial elections, which they are already attempting to game (see Prop 4).
State Prop 6: Yes The proposal, born of COVID-related concerns, would allow residents of nursing or assisted living facilities to designate an essential caregiver who could not be denied in-person access under any circumstances. It’s a compassionate measure after a year when many elderly people were forced to live in isolation.
State Prop 7: Yes The proposition extends homestead tax exemptions to the surviving spouses of disabled individuals who have died, so long as the surviving spouse is 55 or older. Death is hard enough and the current law seems punitive - this is a good change.
State Prop 8: Yes Currently, the exemption is offered to spouses of military members who die in combat - this proposal extends the benefit to families who have lost a loved one in non-combat situations (such as training exercises).
3. "DC: Initiative 82 (tipped minimum wage)" In response to Reply # 0
We actually passed a nearly-identical initiative (then called initiative 77) a few years ago, but the DC Council decided that direct democracy was bad when it resulted in things that the donor class didn't want so they overturned it. Current minimum wage for tipped jobs is $5.05 (or something thereabouts) and Initiative 82 will raise that incrementally over the next 5-6 years so that it matches the local minimum wage of 15.20 by 2027. One key distinction between this one and #77 is that this one affirms explicitly that tips are "property of the employees."
I hope it passes. It was pretty annoying in 2018-19 when the DC Council just shrugged and gave the will of the people a "nope." Then they tried to justify themselves by adding a bunch of regulations that they explained would offer the same protection to workers (except, of course, the "protection" offered by more money) and then just ... didn't fund any of those.
______________________________
"Walleye, a lot of things are going to go wrong in your life that technically aren't your fault. Always remember that this doesn't make you any less of an idiot"
Printer-friendly copy 
Email this topic to a friend
General Discussion
