SamSaid!

BARNUM AND BAILEY

     In California, the circus comes to town on 10/7, the election day for the Gray Davis recall. Davis has decided to campaign against the recall even though the polls suggest that the only thing about him that looks good to the public is his coiffure. The party line Dems are lining up in support unless there are last minute defections. Of course, they will vote party line even if Saddam runs for Lieutenant Governor. The big Repubs are delaying till the last minute for filing, however, an assortment of weirdos is emerging daily. It is not without reason that California is known as the land of fruits and nuts.

     A little known imponderable that could dramatically affect the outcome of the recall is Proposition 54 (the RPI initiative) that will also appear on the ballot. The Racial Privacy Initiative is sponsored in large part by Ward Connerly, a member of the Board of Trustees at UC Cal in Berkeley. Prop 54 is a follow up to Prop 209, also supported by Connerly, which prohibits race preferences in public education, hiring and contracting. Connerly is an outspoken opponent of affirmative action and other kinds of racial preferences.  Prop 54 would outlaw counting or categorizing individuals by race, ethnicity, color or national origin  –  officially it is titled The Classificationn  By Race, Ethnicity, Color or National Origin initiative Constitutional Amendment. Connerly believes that accumulating statistics on the different groups perpetuates divisiness and moves further and further away from  togetherness in a colorblind society. He is a very effective speaker.

     Naturally, Davis quickly opposed the Proposition in order to attract support from minorities and liberal left wing groups looking for handouts.  Not surprising, but it is a calculated gamble. There are so many anti-Davis voices that his urging of a No vote on Prop 54  automatically gives credence and value to the Proposition and its supporters. A lot of independent voters could easily rationalize that if Davis opposes Prop 54, it must be OK. Maybe it is a case of who is pulling whom down the drain.

     The mass media will oppose Prop 54 as they did a few years back for Prop 209. But there is a groundswell of those who have had enough of preferences. Maybe the anit-Davis vote will make the difference. Stay tuned1