Ballot initiatives have become a big money concern for themselves. Campaign spending dealing with a single initiative, such as marijuana reform, can reach tens of millions of dollars. Most initiatives reach the ballot as the result of paid signature gatherers, not volunteer efforts. People or groups who have a financial interest in the matter often sponsor them.
This is where we need to stand up and organize. Financial interests need to stop running what should be rights of people to smoke marijuana. These financial interests are usually out of state people such as Charles and David Koch, oil billionaires in Kansas, who gave 1 million dollars earlier this month to support Proposition 23, which would suspend California’s global warming law that seeds to reduce energy consumption and emissions.
Another example would be The American Beverage Association who has spent more than $14 million seeking to Washington’s initiative to impose beverage and candy taxes. Not to mention the Beer distributors have been opposing proposition 19 and contributing to that by donating money.
People need to organize citizens who are for proposition 19 and who want a greener America. If they continue to let financial interests run the campaigns then on real change will come for the citizenry.
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