Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Vote "Yes" for Illinois "Con-Con"

One of the articles of the 1970 Illinois Constitution is that every twenty years voters have the chance to call for a constitutional convention.

Marathon Pundit enthusiastically calls for a "Yes" vote to straighten out the nation's most corrupt state.

Three of our last seven elected governors have "moved on" to federal prison. Our current governor, Rod Blagojevich, is under federal investigation, and it's believed the feds already have enough evidence to indict him.

Our Congressional districts are gerrymandered messes. So are many of our state legislative districts, and even Chicago wards.

Friends of the blog John Bambenek and Bruno Behrend have put a lot of work into seeing a majority of Illinoisans vote "Yes" for a constitutional convention.

And they produced this fabulous video, with a reworking of The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again."



Here are the first two lines of the song:

Well there's potholes in the streets, and our children can't compete (in schools)

Here's what I'd like to see in a new Illinois constitution:

Computer generated congressional and legislative districts.

A unicameral state legislature.

Strict anti-nepotism laws directed at elected officials.

A recall provision for all state wide officers.

Abolishment of township government in Cook, Lake, DuPage, and St. Clair counties.

On that last one, township government is a patronage rathole. Everything that township government does, and its not a lot, can quickly be absorbed by municipal, county, or state goverments.

Let's take back the state!

UPDATE 5:30pm: Somehow I left out a mention of the pro-Con-Con site, it's called "Yes for Illinois."

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1 comment:

  1. Anonymous10:04 AM

    He Who Forgets History Is Condemned To Repeat It -- the problem with a con-con is that we wouldn't get those kinds of referrendums. We'd get the kind of propositions other states with direct-to-law votes: bans on gay marriage/civil unions, anti illegal immigrant measures, radical reductions in taxes, etc. And this in a state where Lyndon LaRouchies have won off-year elections and the likes of Pate Phillip and Todd Stroger get elected, not appointed. I'd love to have an anti-gerrymandering law, banning lawyers from contributing to judges they appear before, etc. but unless you're a social conservative, the con-con risks infinite harm to civil rights and progressive policies for a finite good.

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