Nov 04 2008
Florida Voting vs. California Voting
In my twenties I lived in Los Angeles to pursue my career in film and television production and, like every other twentysomething wannabe filmmaker, to be way more fabulous than anyone else. By the time I was 29 I was tired of it all. There was very little about California I liked. The two things I miss are my friends and the climate. Everything else, with few exceptions, is crap.
Today being election day, I realized just how much more voter friendly California is compared to Florida. When I lived in California, I would get my sample ballot in the mail and it very clearly stated just what my vote would mean. On questions and referendums the ballot would state the question, then outline what a Yes vote would do and what a No vote would do. Everything was written in plain English so as not to confuse the voters.
Florida, on the other hand, makes it as confusing as possible. (I know, a confusing Florida ballot? You don’t say!) Everything is written in lawyer speak. For example, Constitutional Amendment 3 reads:
Authorizes the legislature, by general law, to prohibit consideration of changes or improvements to residential real property which increase resistance to wind damage and installation of renewable energy source devices as factors in assessing the property’s value for ad valorem taxation purposes.
Not only do I have no idea what that says, I have no clue what ad valorem means. Does anyone know? Anyone who isn’t a lawyer? It seems to me the only people who know any Latin these days are doctors and lawyers.
Being confounded by the ballot takes the fun out of voting. So allow me to add a third thing I miss about California, the crisp copy on their voting ballots.
Man, that is mega confusing. All that ballot quote read to me was, “Blah, blah, blabbity blah.”