King of Miami [11-4] 

 More Election Reflections

Personally, I was so put off by these bond issues and state amendments to the constitution that I voted against all of them, even though there were a few that I actually favored.

By Jack King
Columnist

Hopefully by the time you read this piece we will know who will be running this country, this federal legislature and this county. If that turns out to be not true, we then really have a serious problem that will make 2000 look like chopped chicken liver.

I voted in mid-morning Tuesday and the wait was about an hour, and that was much longer than I expected. In the 25 years or so that I have lived in Coconut Grove, this was the longest wait for voting. In the 1980s there were a third fewer polling places, yet the population has gone up only 20%. At first glance, I think the turnout is a very positive sign for our government.

Problems seem to be solely consisting of long lines and the hour wait. Every person that I observed that had some problem with registration, correct precinct, or identification was handled with professionalism and the utmost courtesy. No outsiders at my poll were allowed inside the building and the ones who claimed they were helping the voters were low key and very unobtrusive. I hope it is working that well throughout the entire country.

That said, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t quite a number of changes that could be made to the system to make it even better. After all, our voting system should be the best we can have, not the minimum to get by without major problems. The first one is that the state of Florida must have in place a uniform voting system for every citizen of this state and that system must stand up to any legal test that may be brought. Right now, Florida has a mishmash of various voting systems that can be at the very least confusing to the electorate. You would think we would have learned from the debacle of 2000 when we became the laughingstock of the world, but no, Governor Jeb Bush and the Republican controlled legislature decided it just wasn’t that important. So what we got was a patchwork system that seemingly allows more educated voters to sail through with no problem, but the less educated get excised from the voting system. Let me say this again: One system for all, and make it a really good one.

The arguments against this proposal just don’t hold water. Take for example the touch screen voting machines. I personally am in favor of the machines because they are easy to use and can have safeguards built into them. One of those safeguards is a paper printout of your vote, complete with a tracking or audit number. What that allows you to do is to input your audit number after the election and pull up your ballot. If it does not match your ballot in hand, raise hell. I have a feeling that the system would be self-policing very quickly.

No doubt, like many of us, you were overwhelmed by the large number of proposed state constitutional amendments and the many proposed bond issues. These issues on the ballot are the direct result of the governor’s and the legislators’ inaction on issues that are important to Floridians. They don’t discuss them, so the electorate feels left out and then they get the signatures to put them on the ballot as changes to the Florida constitution. And these changes have gone from the ridiculous to the sublime. In our Florida constitution we now have protection for pot-bellied pigs. And every so often when a good idea comes and is put into the constitution, like the bullet train, the governor and his cronies ignore it, and then put another constitution change on the ballot to repeal it. Yes, thanks to Governor Bush and the legislature we have a constitution that looks like it was written by Bevis and Butthead.

And finally, all those bond initiatives. Several years ago the city of Miami put a bond issue called “Homeland Defense” on the ballot. Of course, being after 9/11 it passed easily. But as it turns out, it really had nothing to do with homeland defense. And now all through Miami you see signs for storm sewer projects, park buildings, sidewalks, etc. that tout the project is being funded through the homeland defense bond issue. What a scam! Do our elected officials think we are so stupid that we wouldn’t want better storm sewers, or better sidewalks? Apparently they do. In one of the bond issues on this ballot we are asked to construct and improve libraries, cultural facilities and head start learning facilities for pre-school children – to the tune of $553 million. Say, how much is going for the kids and how much for the financial boondoggle known as the Performing Arts Center? Inquiring minds want to know and the answers are not forthcoming.

Personally, I was so put off by these bond issues and state amendments to the constitution that I voted against all of them, even though there were a few that I actually favored. But I have taken a new stance here. Rather than assuming that the politician’s heart is in the right place, I want to know the real truth before I vote. If you can’t tell me that, I certainly am not going to vote to give you more money.