Having just extricated themselves from the condition of subservience, our founding fathers were understandably obsessed with making sure that their new government didn't exchange a tyrant for a tyrant or for a group of tyrants. Their obsession led directly to our system of checks and balances where no single branch of government holds all of the power of government and each branch holds some power over the other two.
Your high school civics class might have left you believing that governmental checks and balances ended with the design of the big three branches, when in fact they are found everywhere. What the framers of the Constitution were most concerned with was guaranteeing individual liberty.
Congress itself was formed deliberately to balance expedience with deliberation - the reactive House of Representatives with its short terms and relatively high turnover balanced against the world's most exclusive debate club, the U.S. Senate. The point was to slow down the mob and give potentially misplaced passions time for reason to creep in.
[Sidebar]By now you're probably wondering... what's all of this really about? There's been a movement lurking through legislatures across the land. It's a movement that started way back in 2000 when certain folks from a certain side of the political spectrum felt that the will of the mob had been thwarted by the rule of law. Their main objective is to destroy the only institution that guarantees that states like New Mexico and her residents have a role in Presidential elections - the Electoral College.
The TRILLION DOLLAR spending, uh... "stimulus" package is a perfect example of the important role the Senate plays in protecting the country from mob rule. The House with nary a second thought stampeded an $800 BILLION spending package right down the taxpayer's throat. When it got to the Senate, the implications of spending for ACORN, condoms, and converter boxes to name just a few, caught up with the bill itself. The public's opinion of the so-called "stimulus" abruptly changed and the Senate is taking the time to actually read it.
[End Sidebar]
Their first sally against the Electoral College was to agitate for the direct destruction of the institution itself. The problem is the Electoral College was created by the Constitution so only a Constitutional Amendment can remove it. However, states themselves determine how electors are chosen making it possible for a group of states to circumvent the Electoral College itself.
The scheme is to get enough states to sign a binding agreement to enable the signatories to control the Electoral College. When the agreement controls 270 or more electoral votes the signatories are bound to choose their electors not on the basis of who won the state vote, but on the basis of who won the popular vote in the signatory states. That means a state where one candidate has won the popular vote could give its electors to the opposing candidate.
Not surprisingly, the New Mexico version of the scheme was introduced by far left darling Representative Mimi Stewart. The folks over at democracyfornewmexico.com report that Stewart's scheme HB383 passed the House Consumer and Public Affairs Committee on Thursday.
“New Mexico hopes to join a growing number of states including Illinois, Maryland, Hawaii, and New Jersey to ensure that every vote is equal,” said Stewart. “We deserve a fair system that guarantees one person, one vote.”First of all, if Stewart were concerned about 1 person, 1 vote, she'd be concerned about the shady activities of groups like ACORN registering the Dallas Cowboys in Nevada. Second, take note of the states in Stewart's list. Except for Hawaii, all of them have massive populations compared to our fair state and all of them are safely held by Democrats.
You don't think that the fact that Stewart's a D has anything to do with her little scheme? It couldn't be that effectively destroying the Electoral College would allow highly populated, heavily blue (Democrat) states to choose the President for years? Naw...
The truth is that the Electoral College creates a modicum of balance just like having two U.S. Senators from every state balances the more populous states who dominate the House. In our nation's history there have only been 3 incidents where the winner of the Electoral College count failed to win a plurality of the popular vote (1876, 1888, 2000).
Normally, we'd believe that Stewart's scheme is a solution in search of a problem. But in this case it's something more nefarious - an attempt to irrevocably tip the Presidency to the left cynically hidden under the banner of voter rights.
If implemented, Stewart's scheme would effectively strip the voting rights away from every state with less than 10 or 15 Electoral College delegates. Folks that's a road to tyranny of the masses. A road to mob rule.
15 comments:
Ruled by Mobs? The road to tyranny already exists in Albuquerque. All you need to do is be out for a pleasure cruise after 8:00 at night to observe what I mean. You can be seized at any time by one or two cops just for enjoying your liberty. You can be tailgated, harassed, have to show your papers at roadblocks as they seize you for no reason. When you have done nothing wrong, you are still not to be trusted. Even when you are innocent, they will lie concerning the reasons you were pulled over (speeding, swerving, failure to use turn signals, license plate light not working etc.). They hide waiting on private property watching like piranhas for their subjects to devour. Their mannerisms suggest you are guilty before proven innocent. After living my entire life here, and having seen other parts of the world, I know this to be true. What they tell you, and want you to believe is they are trying to keep you safe. A good number of citizens are not fooled by their deceptions though! History shows us what happened to Rome, Germany, and other empires many years ago concerning corruption of government (Not that Albuquerque is really an empire). Also, our forefathers were trying to get away from people like them when they drafted our U.S. constitution. We are not to be ruled by tyrants.
Well, just look at the administration that we have and the tyranny is clear.
Hindi is the worst cop and he's one of those cops that retired and came back. He really does lay in wait, he profiles then follows cars and pulls them over for little infractions, they may have not even know about.
He pulled over my 80 year old mom and harrased her, gave her a ticket for not making a proper lane change. She's never had a ticket since she started driving. He was so mean to her she called me crying.
Last weeks article about the guy with the cigar stand is a perfect example.
Hindi has got to go he's a really really bad example of a cop and gives APD a black eye all the time. I wonder what his IA file looks like? Just what does he have on Marty and Ray??
Hindi is a great cop and I wish there were more like him. If there were, then there would be less crime in Albuquerque. Think he's bad...go to court and see him address the hundreds of tickets he issues each month and count how many cases he loses.
I know you'll say the court is as corrupt as him and that means of course the state is corrupt but since you'll do little more than post on a blog....we all aren't very concerned about you.
Get over it.
February 8, 2009 11:52:00 AM MST
Some people in the court system can be trusted. Some people who wear an APD uniform are fair. Unfortunately, the "bad apples" are the ones we remember most. It makes us question who the good cops really are (they all look the same).
I'll get over it once the bad ones crawl back under the rock where they came.
Thanks for your suggestion though!
Rumor has it that the "Almighty Alcalde" called in his manager goons this weekend (including Ray Ray) and started discussing mandatory leave for all city employees starting in March.....
Eye, the reason many people are concerned about the electoral college is because the current system gives voters in small states a much larger share of the vote than voters in large states. For example a Wyoming voter's vote is worth more than twice as much towards an electoral vote as someone from California or New York's does. Why do you think that your vote should have more weight than someone's in a more populous state? To paraphrase Animal Farm: "All [voters] are equal, but some are more equal than others."
Also, your sidebar is completely idiotic. ACORN isn't getting any money in the stimulus package. That whole idea was invented by the GOP over a package that sets aside money for non-profit groups to buy and rehabilitate abandoned or foreclosed houses. John Boehner apparently thinks that "non-profit groups" somehow equals ACORN even though this activity is not something that ACORN would engage in. The actual groups who would take advantage of this are orgs like Habitat for Humanity or various Christian organizations who specialize in providing housing to those who can't afford it. The fact that you accept and breathlessly pass on this bit of GOP made-up propaganda as authentic is very pathetic. Additionally, ACORN hasn't been found to have engaged in any wrongdoing whatsoever in the 2008 elections and actually flagged all the suspicious registrations collected as potentially fraudulent before turning them in. ACORN isn't allowed to throw away a voter registration even if it is blatantly fraudulent - that's Federal Law. They have to turn every single one they get in, regardless if its for Mickey Mouse or not.
Is it just you or is it all cops who think that voting rights should be more equal for some (Republicans) than for others (Democrats)?
Mandatory leave for city workers? Hmmmm---will it start from the top down? Not likely....
Also, I want to know why I see so many cops at Monte's cigar bar? Are they there on a call out or for a smoke? 2 weeks ago it was a Sgt. SUV, last week a patrol car, then 2 days or so ago a state police officer.
What gives??
cops like to smoke good cigars like anyone else,,,what gives? I see them at Imbibes too and don't feel threatened by it at all. Next time i see one either of those places in fact i'll but them one for a job well done.
To Mr. Wolf:
Hindi may have a great misdemeanor conviction. As you say "get over it".
The 80 year old woman making an inproper lane change was probalby breaking the law. Too bad Hidni can't channel his too tough athority on some real criminals. He could have given her a ticket without demeaning her.
So making an 80 year old woman with no infractions makes Hindi a great cop?? I have to ask why you stand by this type of blantant harrasement.
If Hindi wants to play tough than maybe he should be in SWAT... but not a patrol cop.
Your "get over it" motto is exactly why the general public is uneasy about APD.
Wow you saw a total of three cops at a cigar store in a 2 week period? Holy cow, must be a conspiracy!! Heaven forbid that they stop to buy a good cigar on their break, at the only really decent cigar place left in the city.
How about we drop by your work and see how you spend your break time.....?
So Hindi bullying an 80 year old woman makes him a good cop?
No matter how many tickets he gives out that doesn't give him the right to treat people like shit.
He needs some customer service training. He's one of the few that gives the rest of us a bad rap.
Most of us aren't afraid of cops. We realize they have now made something of their lives. Their moms wouldn't give them as much credit when they were growing up. They rarely could keep a girl friend, either (even now). I've heard about Imbibes, I'll stop by sometime.
I heard the Governor likes a good cigar too. Rumor has it, he was the third passenger in a serious accident in Santa Fe after spending a night at his favorite smoke bar.
conspiracies everywhere!
...not unless he was wearing a dress in that back seat and moonlights for a local station...
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