CHAPARRAL

Roots of Unity
by Mike Allen, Guild President

Election Picks and Pans

Some of you have already submitted your absentee ballots for the November 7th election, but I hope most of you are still planning to, or will be showing up at your local polling place that day (I'm sort of old-fashioned about this, I guess, and always enjoy voting in person).  So, I would like to highlight a few decisions you will be making and give you the recommendations from CFT, our union's statewide federation.

     Elsewhere in this issue you will see a blurb in favor of Proposition 1D, which is one of the two key positions CFT has taken.  The other is opposition to Prop. 88, which would impose a statewide parcel tax on real property to fund education.  Why would we oppose that?

     Well, for one thing, the tax is a flat $50 per year on every parcel in the state regardless of value.  Obviously, this is highly regressive, with the owner of a tiny home paying the same as a corporation which owns a mammoth tract of commercial property.  Another reason is that the money would directed only to K-12, which is already funded better than segments such as our own.

     Finally, there is fear of a "feel good" effect, where people think they have done their bit for education if they pass this proposition, even though it will raise relatively little money.  You may remember the self-serving arguments of supporters who played on just this sentiment to get the California lottery set up.  Many voters still wonder why our education funding is so low since, after all, they approved the lottery and some of the money was going to go to education, right?

     The other area to which I would direct your attention is the statewide officer races.  I know that many people are disheartened to see Angelides trailing somewhat in the polls to Herr Schwarzenegger.  I would ask voters to remember what happened in 2000, when they allowed the charismatic Republican boob to defeat the dull Democratic wonk.  But there's another reason to encourage faculty to turn out and vote.

     We have to make sure good people are elected to the "down-ticket" offices as well.  These officers often have a big effect on how the state is run, and can counter the machinations of an untrustworthy governor.  In particular, you should note that the treasurer and controller both have seats on the board of our State Teacher's Retirement System, which has been under right-wing attack. 

     You may think these right-wingers learned their lesson when we trounced them in the special election last November, but even an Arnold that is desperately playing towards the middle (this year) has recently stated that there were "good ideas" on that ballot.  Bill Lockyer for treasurer and John Chiang for controller are thus essential votes we must drive to help protect our retirement benefits.  This is especially true since many of us do not also pay into Social Security or any other pension plan.

     To close, let me get into highlighting the benefits of Guild membership.  You can get objective advice from the experts at Consumer Reports and start making wiser purchase choices by reading product reviews, ratings, and buying guides.  If you belong to a union, you automatically benefit from the Union Plus 27% discount on ConsumerReports.org at UnionPlus.org/ConsumerReports.

     And, by the way, the Newspaper Guild of New York (CWA Local 31003) represents nearly 300 workers at Consumers Union (publisher of Consumer Reports), from the engineers who test the products to the writers and editors who produce the stories to the office and clerical workers.  Union workers—support union products! &

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