Posted on 02/03/2006 9:49:39 AM PST by FOG724
Cows Don’t Vote…
…Or so I’m told but this 40-year-old Supreme Court decision is back in the news. Judge Alito’s 1985 comments on Baker v. Carr 1962 and Wesburry v. Sanders 1963 have brought the discussion back.
Prior to these decisions, some state congressional districts were drawn differently based on region not population, much like the Senate. This helped even out the population disparity in rural areas and kept them from being dominated by urban centers.
This was also the era of Jim Crow and blacks were being gerrymandered out of their right to vote by segregationists in the south. The court decided that districts must be drawn on the basis of population and in such a way as to give minorities’ self-determined representation.
Things have changed since then. This is no longer the early 1960s. Gone are the days when a former Klan-recruiter-turned-Senator could stand on the Senate floor and lead a filibuster against the ’64 Civil Rights Act. Evidence of disenfranchisement now is anecdotal, like being stopped by police two miles from the polling place, or Representatives such as JC Watts being elected in predominantly white districts. Like Jim Crow itself, the need for equal protection for minorities is rapidly fading into the past.
What has become plainly evident is that we need equal protection for rural counties. Voters in rural California have a diminished voice.
The county by county voting map that was so prominently displayed during the contentious vote counts of the 2000 election are mirrored in the county by county map of California. Most of the counties voted for one candidate while the large urban centers voted for the other.
The urban centers carried the state, effecting not only the national election but the greater representation given to these populous urban centers. This effect issues such as property rights, land use, water rights and environmental protections. While these issues affect rural California and agricultural communities, they are decided by urban votes.
Why is it ok for the State of Delaware to have two Senators just as California does but it’s not ok for the state Senate to be apportioned by region as well? Why is it ok for Los Angeles to have more state Senators than Siskiyou County, especially when it comes to issues that effect Siskiyou to a greater degree than LA? This time it is the rural resident that has been gerrymandered out of their voting rights. They no longer have equal protection under the law.
Governor Schwarzenegger’s recent special election initiatives included provisions for redistricting. I disagreed with the provisions as laid out in that initiative but agree that the issue is a valid one. We’ve all seen odd shapes created when districts are drawn. The solution may be to start using county lines. Greater representation needs to be given to rural areas. LA and SF should not be allowed to dominate this state. The founding fathers decided this issue in what would be known as The Great Compromise. We need to return to the principles they laid out, one house apportioned by population, one house apportioned by region.
The Grange has fought hard for rural America for more years than any other organization. We have changed the quality of life for those who live in less populated areas. It is time to take up that yoke and move forward again.
ping
Oops left you out of the ping. sorry.
I beg to differ. Didn't Rosie O'Donut say she was going to vote against Bush?
Wonderful article you have put together for the Grange!!! Bravo!!! Encore!!!
May this issue be revisited in Justice Alito's Supreme Court and overturned from it's devious inception during the Warren Court!!!
I disagreed with the provisions as laid out in that initiative but agree that the issue is a valid one. (Next time!)
We’ve all seen odd shapes created when districts are drawn. (23rd Congressional District, Ca)
The solution may be to start using county lines. (I always wondered why we had so dam many of them)
Greater representation needs to be given to rural areas. (It's only fair.)
LA and SF should not be allowed to dominate this state. (' Nuff said.)
The founding fathers decided this issue in what would be known as The Great Compromise. (aaawwwww, who studies history any more?)
We need to return to the principles they laid out, one house apportioned by population, one house apportioned by region.
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Sounds fair to me.. a healthy debate never killed anyone, did it? There is, to say the least, a bit of an incongruity in how things are done and who gets to do what to whom when it comes to redistricting in California.
At least a discussion has been ongoing, in time, if we don't turn into part of aztlan, enough voters may actually agree to some kind of reform thet benefits most of not all of its legal residents and citizens.
Cows do vote. Take Hillary, for another.
Libertarian ping.To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here
BUMP!
They need to revoke the voting rights of the dead that elect him every time.
Good job.
Thanks.
Rights, farms, environment ping.BTTT
How do we help?
Kind of off-topic; but considering the thread's title...
http://www.3dweb.no/galleri/stuestolbm/bilder/anim1.swf
(5 minutes, 1.83meg, shockwave)
See you mentioned my county! It is so very true that the decisions are being made by the city-folk. The alternative push is toward regionalization. However, I am not willing to surrender local control to a regional coalition with Humboldt or Shasta County where we would be forced to adopt model ordinances and policies decided by the group. I want government to be accountable to the people that elected them. It is simply wrong for any legislator to pass a law his people will not have to live under. When that happens, it means that government should be taken back down to whatever local level there is that restores proper scope commensurate with accountability.
Oh I must pass this on. Thanks, too much fun!
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