News
It’s About Time to Change California’s Initiative Process
Posted December 1st, 2008 by jpritikin
By Linda Sutton
America, Islam And Prejudice
Posted November 25th, 2008 by jpritikinI recently was contacted by someone that asked me to check out Whitehouse2.com. I was thoroughly impressed with the site because of the simplicity of the premise that it incorporated in its design. It was a simple, straightforward way to make your priorities known to the incoming administration.
Op-Ed - Proposition Overload
Posted November 10th, 2008 by jpritikinHere are some things you should know about ballot initiatives in California.
In all of the 1960s, there were only nine statewide initiatives placed on the ballot. In the 1970s, that number rose to 22. In the 1980s, Californians were asked to vote on 46; then, in the 1990s, it climbed to 61. So far in this decade, there already have been 63 — and there’s still a year to go, with a possible special election in June.
That’s a record every decade — and a sevenfold increase over 50 years.
"Blow Up Guantanamo, Recognize Cuba, and Withdraw from Iraq": An Interview with Mike Gravel
Posted October 27th, 2008 by jpritikinThe former senator and one-time Democratic presidential candidate explains why both Obama and McCain are cut from the same imperialist cloth, and what he thinks of fellow Alaskan Sarah Palin's rise.
Letter of the Week: Our form of Democracy must be reformed
Posted October 12th, 2008 by jpritikinEDITOR: Our country's elected representatives and system are inept and totally controlled by two political parties, special interests and large corporations. Mainstream media, including this paper, now being owned and controlled by a few, have become nothing more than another very powerful, manipulative special interest group.
Whether Obama or McCain wins, America loses
Posted October 6th, 2008 by jpritikinWhat kind of president will the winner of November's national popularity contest be? If history is any judge, the nation's next chief executive, whether Democrat Barack Obama or Republican John McCain, will be something of a monster.
Think tank: Give voters a direct line to power
Posted September 28th, 2008 by jpritikinRegular referendums will revive democracy
To meet that emergency, Wolf urges citizens to band together for more direct democracy - a call she'll take to the University of North Carolina Wilmington on Monday night.
Valdehuesa: All we have is a caricature of democracy
Posted September 12th, 2008 by jpritikinTO INSTITUTIONALIZE true democracy, it is important to ensure that it is operative at the grassroots, the primal base of a political system, whence emanates state sovereignty and all government authority.
To speak of the grassroots is to refer to one's community - in our case, the barangay. It is our basic political and economic unit.
What's your take on the Mindanao crisis? Discuss views with other readers
State Voters Can Give Themselves Stronger Voice
Posted September 10th, 2008 by jpritikinNov. 4 will be a seminal day. We the people will be able to gain a stronger voice by voting yes on a ballot question, "Shall the state Constitution Convention be convened to revise or amend the state Constitution?" This question appears every 20 years as provided for in our state constitution.
The Voters of Arizona Launch the 'NO on 105' Campaign in Phoenix and Tucson Declaring That it is Wrong to Count People Who Don't
Posted September 10th, 2008 by jpritikinVote NO on 105 and protect voting rights PHOENIX, Sept. 10PHOENIX ,Sept. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- The Voters ofArizona gathered today simultaneously inPhoenix andTucson for the official NO on 105 Campaign Kickoff. In opposition to Proposition 105, the "so-called" Majority Rules amendment, the Voters of Arizona Committee cited the pitfalls of this proposed constitutional amendment as an attack on the act of voting and onArizona voters.
In the mail: Measure 2: A rare chance to cut your own taxes
Posted September 7th, 2008 by jpritikinMANDAN, N.D. — Recently, Measure 2 officially was certified for the Nov. 4 ballot. Voters will have a historic opportunity to vote on guaranteed tax relief, thanks to the work of 65 North Dakotans who helped put Measure 2 on the ballot.
Every month, we hear new estimates of just how big the surplus will be. The latest number by the Office of Management and Budget pegs the projected surplus just less than $1.3 billion, with more than $450 million of that excess revenue occurring outside of the oil-tax windfall the state has enjoyed.
Despite breadth, Reform Michigan Government Now! ballot proposal isn't too difficult to comprehend
Posted September 1st, 2008 by jpritikinIt would have been a great experiment in direct democracy.
At the turn of the century, there was a politician by the name of William Jennings Bryan. He was called the Great Commoner because he claimed to represent that era's person on the street --Êor in those days, it was just as likely to be the person on the farm.
He must have been popular, because three times the Democratic Party nominated him for president: in 1896, in 1900 and again in 1908. He was a forerunner of the later Progressive movement and pioneered reforms such as the referendum, recall and initiative.