10/4/04 Voting Starts in Calfornia

Vote by mail, also known as absentee voting, starts on October 4, 2004 in California. As always, the big issues on the ballot are the propositions and are the reason why every who can should vote in every election. Are you registered? Have you received your 2 voter handbooks? Have you signed up to be a permanent absentee voter so you vote in every election?

If you are not registered, PLEASE DO SO NOW. You have until October 18, 2004 to register for this election. You must be at least 18 years or older, a US citizen and registered to vote on or before October 18, 2004 to vote in this election. If you will be 18 on November 2, election day, you can register now. You can vote if you are homeless. You can also vote if you are not in prison or on parole for a felony conviction.

The San Francisco Election Department is in the blue-striped white pages of your phone book and at:
http://www.sfgov.org/site/election_index.asp?id=4441
Voter registration is at:
(415) 554-4411
debra.brown [at] sfgov.org

Please also sign up to be a permanent absentee voter so that you get your ballot in the mail in every election. Voting at home is much easier as you do not have to worry about voting on our ridiculous Tuesday election day when you probably have to work. Once you complete your ballot, you can mail it to your County registrar immediately.

You can sign up to be an absentee voter when you register now or by filling out the application on the back cover of your County booklet and mailing it immediately to the Elections Department. It must be received no later than October 26, 2004. DO NOT DELAY; SIGN UP TODAY!

If you are registered at your current address but do not have the California voter handbook describing all the propositions or the County voter handbook describing all the County propositions and candidates, CALL YOUR COUNTY REGISTRAR TODAY. You are probably not registered, and YOU MUST REGISTER NOW.

You can vote every weekday, starting October 4, 2004 through November 2, at your County Elections Department.

In San Francisco, that is City Hall, in the basement on the Van Ness side, Van Ness and Grove streets, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. You can also vote on Oct 23-24 and Oct 30-31 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. On Election Day, you can vote from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. If you cannot find your polling place stated on the mailing label of your County booklet or it is closed, you can vote at your County registrar's office.

As a rule of thumb, this writer, like most socialists, opposes bonds, sales taxes, gambling, prisons, police, the death penalty and the military. We generally support taxing business and the rich. Instead of bonds, projects are best paid for by the progressive income tax, also known as tax the rich. The legislators need to be told to write bills to appropriate funds, that is our tax dollars, for your favorite projects.

The most important of the 15 propositions on the San Francisco ballot is PROPOSITION N, which is as follows:
Shall it be City policy to urge the United States government to withdraw all troops from Iraq and bring all military personnel in Iraq back to the United States?

The financial crisis at home is directly linked to the tax expenditure in this blood for oil war in Iraq. As one ballot argument states:
Since May 2003, Congress has appropriated over $150 billion. This war has cost the State of Califonria over $19 billion, and San Francisco $520 million.

San Francisco loves to claim it is "progressive," and for peace. The vote on this proposition will demonstrate just how true this is. Yes on N.

The most important of the 15 California propositions are:
Proposition 62-No
Proposition 64-No
Proposition 66-Yes
Proposition 72-Yes

Prop 62 would destroy all the small parties in California, such as Peace & Freedom Party, California's socialist electoral party, and the Green Party. It is very anti-democratic as it limits our choices on the ballot.
See http://www.Noon62.com

Proposition 64 limits our right to file lawsuits, in this case, unfair competition lawsuits. It is bad for consumers.
See http://www.NoonProp64.org or
http://www.electionwatchdog.org/

Proposition 66 limits the third offense in the horrifying prison-promoting three-strikes law to a violent offense. It will restore the concept of rehabilitation instead of punishment, which will save the taxpayers' money and build a much better society. This is not enough, but it is a start.
See: http://www.voteyeson66.org

Proposition 72 is a healthcare initiative that broadens the availability of healthcare coverage, at a time when millions of people have no healthcare coverage and that number is increasing daily.
See: http://www.YesonProp72.com

For more information on all the ballot propositions, read your California voter handbook and see:
The California Voter website at:
http://www.calvoter.org/voter/elections/2004/index.html

For more on Peace & Freedom Party's candidates, see
http://www.peaceandfreedom2004.org