At least he hasn't groped me yet
A year ago today, California voted to kick out its current governor and bring in an action hero. Embarassing. Not as embarassing as I'd feared it would be, but that's not saying much.
In other words, he's a conservative whackjob, but has also done one or two things I agree with. I'm shocked every time.
The LA Times ran an article a few days ago running down bills Gov. Arnold has vetoed and approved. The good news:
* Electronic ballots will have printouts, but unfortunately, not until 2005.
* Hybrid drivers can use the carpool lane even if they're driving alone. He approved some other environmental legislation, too.
* Same-sex domestic partners get spousal insurance benefits (it's a start).
* People with drug convictions are now eligible for food stamps. (Wait. They weren't before?)
* Pharmacists can sell up to 10 hypodermic needles without a prescription. Considering US drug policy, this is pretty radical. It's nice to see someone in power remembering that AIDS still exists.
Then again, there's the fairly extensive bad news, mostly in the realm of favoring corporate interests over actual people:
* No drivers' licenses for illegals, not because of any legal principle, really, but because Schwarzenegger was afraid terrorists would then infiltrate the country. Right, like all they've been missing is the right to drive legally. That's really keeping them away.
* He vetoed seven of nine bills that would have lowered prescription drug costs.
* He vetoed a bill that would have required employers to let their workers know if management might read their email.
* Hummers are still legal, but ferrets aren't.
* There were five bills that would have tracked and curbed outsourcing. All vetoed.
* Employers in California still don't have to provide maternity benefits (regardless of how you feel about kids, let's at least pretend we live in a wealthy industrializerd society for a minute...)
* He vetoed a bill to raise the minimum wage by fifty cents per hour (at least it's already fairly "high" compared to the rest of the country, even other expensive states. As I've said before, New Jersey ought to be ashamed.)
* Journalists can't interview prison inmates. A bill might have changed that; he vetoed it. I'm wondering, don't we have a bill that covers journalistic freedom? Like, the Bill of Rights? I'll have to look into this further.
* LA's ports are expanding, and Arnold doesn't seem to be allowing any environmental checks on them.
* Smoking will be banned in California prisons. I'd respect this more if it was a Draconian crackdown on prisoner "privileges," but he claimed it was for health reasons. This from the guy who built a smoking tent adjacent to his office, because there's no smoking allowed in the building. Do as I say, not as I do.
And so on.
In conclusion, the state's still standing, he's done very little to get me incredibly outraged, and life here isn't the daily farce I feared it would become. However, it's pretty sad that "he hasn't turned my home into a complete spectacle" is as much as I expect from my elected leaders. Frankly, it's all I want from John Kerry.
A year ago today, California voted to kick out its current governor and bring in an action hero. Embarassing. Not as embarassing as I'd feared it would be, but that's not saying much.
In other words, he's a conservative whackjob, but has also done one or two things I agree with. I'm shocked every time.
The LA Times ran an article a few days ago running down bills Gov. Arnold has vetoed and approved. The good news:
* Electronic ballots will have printouts, but unfortunately, not until 2005.
* Hybrid drivers can use the carpool lane even if they're driving alone. He approved some other environmental legislation, too.
* Same-sex domestic partners get spousal insurance benefits (it's a start).
* People with drug convictions are now eligible for food stamps. (Wait. They weren't before?)
* Pharmacists can sell up to 10 hypodermic needles without a prescription. Considering US drug policy, this is pretty radical. It's nice to see someone in power remembering that AIDS still exists.
Then again, there's the fairly extensive bad news, mostly in the realm of favoring corporate interests over actual people:
* No drivers' licenses for illegals, not because of any legal principle, really, but because Schwarzenegger was afraid terrorists would then infiltrate the country. Right, like all they've been missing is the right to drive legally. That's really keeping them away.
* He vetoed seven of nine bills that would have lowered prescription drug costs.
* He vetoed a bill that would have required employers to let their workers know if management might read their email.
* Hummers are still legal, but ferrets aren't.
* There were five bills that would have tracked and curbed outsourcing. All vetoed.
* Employers in California still don't have to provide maternity benefits (regardless of how you feel about kids, let's at least pretend we live in a wealthy industrializerd society for a minute...)
* He vetoed a bill to raise the minimum wage by fifty cents per hour (at least it's already fairly "high" compared to the rest of the country, even other expensive states. As I've said before, New Jersey ought to be ashamed.)
* Journalists can't interview prison inmates. A bill might have changed that; he vetoed it. I'm wondering, don't we have a bill that covers journalistic freedom? Like, the Bill of Rights? I'll have to look into this further.
* LA's ports are expanding, and Arnold doesn't seem to be allowing any environmental checks on them.
* Smoking will be banned in California prisons. I'd respect this more if it was a Draconian crackdown on prisoner "privileges," but he claimed it was for health reasons. This from the guy who built a smoking tent adjacent to his office, because there's no smoking allowed in the building. Do as I say, not as I do.
And so on.
In conclusion, the state's still standing, he's done very little to get me incredibly outraged, and life here isn't the daily farce I feared it would become. However, it's pretty sad that "he hasn't turned my home into a complete spectacle" is as much as I expect from my elected leaders. Frankly, it's all I want from John Kerry.
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