Supreme Court: ‘Strong on Law’

Are our elected officials “for” or “against” imposing the will of Californians? As an ordinary, middle-class citizen, with a fair amount of intelligence and common sense, I believe Proposition 8, “The Victims’ Bill of Rights” explicitly states what the majority of Californians want in the way of protecting our lives and property. The only tool I have available to convey my wishes and beliefs on how this government is run is through my vote. I am a diligent and responsible voter, but each time I vote I find the Supreme Court telling us they cannot impose our wishes because of some technicality in the wording of initiatives.

We now also have The Times telling us we’re a bunch of dummies because we (the people) don’t know how to write propositions correctly. I admit, I am a dummy when it comes to legal mumbo-jumbo. Well, by now the Supreme Court knows well enough that Californians can’t articulate well enough when it comes to writing legal documents. So, maybe the Supreme Court will offer to lend us a helping hand (since that’s what we pay them to do). Maybe if the court reviews our initiatives before they go on the ballot (at no cost and expeditiously, of course) to assure that the language used clearly conveys intent and that all possible loopholes are closed, we can all save a lot of time, agony, and money and we can finally get on with really having the voice of the people heard in this democracy.

CANDACE VAN SCHOYCK

Woodland Hills