Pubdate: Fri, 21 May 1999
Date: 05/21/1999
Source: Anchorage Daily News (AK)
Author: Peter Jenkins

A group of our esteemed legislators wants to limit our ability to
express ourselves through the initiative process. They claim we are
not smart enough to understand the issues and are too easily swayed by
special interests. This from a group of people whom special interest
groups spend millions of dollars annually lobbying to influence their
votes. This highly intelligent, well-informed group has not come close
to solving the subsistence problem in 10 years, nor have they come up
with a long-range financial plan to deal with the state's budget problems.

When the budget is cobbled together in the remaining hours of the
session, it is doubtful that a single representative or senator has
read the complete document or understands what is in it. In the past,
this has never stopped them from voting for it. In the same vein, it
is not uncommon for legislation to be so poorly written that it has to
be corrected the next session. The concealed-carry law is an instance.

So when we express our overwhelming opinion on such issues as medical
marijuana, billboards and game management, it is not surprising that
some egotistical, special-interest-serving legislators claim they need
to modify the will of the people.

They have one thing going for them: Enough of us were swayed by their
election propaganda to send them down there.

Peter Jenkins,
Eagle River