Amanda Marcotte just posted a link to a petition to start a petition to place Proposition 8-corrected initiative on the ballot. Using the Google to look for an actual, formal proposition that might get the job done, the top hits were all for petitions similar to this one.
My question: why?
It costs millions of dollars to qualify a ballot initiative, only because it requires so very many signatures (a percentage of the total electorate) that the only way to do it is by paying people to stand in front of grocery stores. We have all of this wonderful online organization, and we can't put a serious dent in that signature-gathering threshold before the paid gathers even have to hit the streets?
Why isn't something like that already in the works?
This feels a lot like back, before the election, when I was wandering around pulling Yes on 8 signs off of public property, wanting to do more, but unsure of where to go. There seems to have been a lot of that going around, and the result was that we were all blindsided by the result.
Anyone?
I commented, pointing out that the petition is not exactly what it looks like, and Amanda responded that it still needs signatures. I agree, that signatures on that kind of thing are good. But who will the petition be presented to, and who will it convince? Further, will 10,000 signatures make any difference to anyone when public polling shows clear, broad trends statewide, even among likely voters?
This entire issue seems to be the sort of thing that Kos is going on and on about... no Free Mumia bullshit (even though it is important). We must take concrete steps according to a plan that actually has a chance of succeeding. Like an actual petition that could get an actual initiative on the actual ballot.
Instead, petitions for a petition are clogging up the Google.
I admit that this kind of post should probably be banned, with me sitting here whining that there is no Pied Piper trotting around and telling me what to do, that I should be more actively engaged if I think active engagement is required. I admit this. On the other hand, I'm moving this month.
Please, I hope someone can point me in the direction of something I can do right now. And more than that, something I can point my friends at (who are not activism-prone), so we can get their signatures too.
rant concluded
Help me out?