it’s not even a public majority in this case! For fuck’s sake, it’s not even a majority of practicing Christians! It is a whipped-up minority! What’s the turnout in Maine this year? 50%. Close to half of 50% of registered voters (65% of the state’s population) opposed the gay marriage amendment. You know what that adds up to in absolutes? SEVENTEEN PERCENT OF MAINE’S POPULATION.FYI - The remainder of the state was either too apathetic to vote, doesn’t have voting rights… or is too consumed by whatever they do for a living to carry out their civic duties, as usual. Yes, turnout matters, and it matters BIG. And it matters less than whoever you work for or whatever other silly thing you might plan on election day, no matter what. Vote absentee if you must.
I agree about getting gay marriage off the ballot. But don’t go down this road. If you do, someone will point out that only 22% (or whatever) of people voted for Obama. You can’t assume the people who stayed home would have voted differently. Most research shows they usually vote the same as the ones who turn out. Yes, in a close election just a few votes would have tipped it. But the pro-gay-marriage side had tons of money and publicized it to the hilt. I’m sure they pulled out everyone they could. It just comes back to: these things shouldn’t be put to a vote.
Right, well, voting to fill an elected office seat is different than a referendum. And I think that policy decisions often do not belong on a ballot requiring a simple majority to pass; it’s like a completely different form of government than what our Constitution described. Legal, yes, but certainly not following the spirit of the document. (And if you think that’s a lie, consider: federal Constitutional Conventions all require 2/3rds majorities to succeed, designed that way for a reason, from the very start.)
California is dysfunctional because of their referendum system. And they’re thinking of convening a Constitutional Convention out there to wipe the slate clean and do away with the current nonsense.
The good thing about electing officeholders to make policy decisions is that it works like the Electoral College to prevent that tyranny of the majority from having a direct effect on executive and legislative matters. If we didn’t have the Electoral College, the strategy for virtually every political career in the US would be different, but certainly not better. I think it encourages elected offcials to represent voters rather than appeal to them. On the other hand, referendums allow voters to decide things based on personal appeal, and not on what’s best for society. I know a lot of people have their reservations about gay marriage, including reservations about how it contradicts their religious teachings; essentially, the referendum allowed people to vote for what was good for their religion, not their fellow citizens. I’m nauseous even thinking about that idea.
