The Washington State Initiative process can be so entertaining!

[elfs]

Washington State has a lively public initiative process. Below is the list of state intiatives, as worded on the Secretary of State's website, filed in the current electoral season. Look at it closely and tell me if you see something amiss:

• Initiative 1032 concerns state, county and city revenue.
• Initiative 1033 concerns state, county and city revenue.
• Initiative 1035 concerns state, county and city revenue.
• Initiative 1040 concerns a supreme ruler of the universe.
• Initiative 1041 concerns driver instruction permit requirements.
• Initiative 1042 concerns charges relating to motor vehicles.
• Initiative 1044 concerns taxes on business receipts.
• Initiative 1045 concerns a state-run health insurance program.
• Initiative 1046 concerns safety equipment.

Yeah, okay, I bolded it for you. You have to read it all, though, 'cause initiative author Kimberlie Struiksma has written quite a hoot! Here's a taste:

Our government has been instituted among us, with our consent, for the purpose of protecting and maintaining our liberties. According to the founding documents of our democratic society, our liberties are true and valid because they are endowed by a higher power. By contending that a higher power does not exist, our government removes the source of, invalidates, and consequently denies the people of the United States our liberty. Thus, by denying the existence of a higher power our government defeats its purpose. It is therefore unconstitutional for the government, as opposed to individual citizens, of the state of washing to deny or attempt to refute the existence of a Creator, the one responsible for Blessing us with liberty, the Supreme Ruler of the Universe.
...
Respecting no establishment of religion, yet with respect to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, whose existence has been declared in the preamble to the Constitution of the state of Washington, the state shall make no appropriation for nor apply any public moneys or property in support of anything, specifically including but not limited to, any display, exercise, instruction, textbook, scientific endeavor, circulated document, or research project which denies or attempts to refute the existence of the Supreme Ruler of the Universe.

Yeah, this one would never survive judicial review. I'm really surprised that the Discovery Institute isn't all over this like blowflies in a cowfield. I mean, one of her targets is evolutionary biology. See that entry above about "scientific endeavors?":

"Scientific endeavor" means any act, idea, theory, intervention, conference, organization having to do with science.

It's like Intelligent Design gold!

Apparently, though, her attempt to ban evolution, which is one of her explicit goals, is at odds with her mentor, Tom Hoyle of the "Bible and Science Ministries," a well-known creation science outlet. He said in an interview on the topic: "You don't have to mention God, you can simply emphasize the fact that wow, nature is awesome, it's very well designed and that macroevolution is an insufficient mechanism to explain all this stuff." Every time someone says "macroevolution," you have to ask him what that means: it's not a term that biologists use very often, because there's no working definition that draws a clear distinction. As for "very well designed," I have to wonder if Hoyle has ever had tendonitis, hemorrhoids, or allergies.

Comments

[jpallan.livejournal.com]

Christ. No wonder everyone I know in Seattle is such a cynic.

We have a wonderful system known as the Town Meeting where everyone convenes to discuss all of the town's business, once per year. No one leaves happy and very little gets conclusively done. But then it's over.

(In fact, it's very similar to Þing.)

A friend of my husband's from San Francisco just spent some weeks with us and discussed the ballot initiative to change the name of the sewerage plant. "Had anyone considered the cost of just having the bloody sign made up and putting it up and seeing if anyone noticed, as opposed to the costs of running an election, bringing in election commissioners, printing signs for the initiative, mailing ballots to shut-ins and expatriates and the cost of the vote count and publication?"

Jesus.

[gromm.livejournal.com]

What, were they going to name it after someone or something? "The Rick Santorum Sewerage Plant" has a nice ring to it. :)

Either way, we rename entire ministries up here in BC on a whim, which I would imagine probably gets kind of expensive on its own.

[jpallan.livejournal.com]

Yes. Dubya. I laughed too, but what the hell? Just do it or don't. Lord have mercy.

[icebluenothing.livejournal.com]

# Initiative 1040 concerns a supreme ruler of the universe.

Damn. When I first read that line, I was really, really hoping this was going to be an elected position.

*laughs*

[jenk]

I truly doubt it will make it to the ballot. Kinda like the various anti-abortion bills that get introduced each session and never make it out of committee.

[rhonan.livejournal.com]

My only problem with her initiative is that it does not actually show proper respect to the true creator, and it contradicts many of the things he supports. His Noodley Eminence shows great favor on science and scientists.