Environmental Politics

You are certainly correct in your view that something needs to be done about the monster initiatives (editorial Nov. 12). However, your fine editorial failed to mention one small remedy that would make the monster much easier to control. Make it illegal to pay people to collect signatures for the initiatives.

This would eliminate initiatives designed to protect financial interests--certainly at least all the “poison pill” initiatives. In fact, it would likely have eliminated at least three-quarters of the initiatives from the last ballot. One initiative designed to promote the logging industry was called protection for our forests.

If the people who designed and understood the real purpose of the initiative also had to put in the time collecting signatures, laws protecting financial interests would be limited to their traditional champions--the politicians. This solution might not turn the monster into a pussycat, but it would certainly shrink it to much more manageable proportions.

EUGENE A. TROXELL, Poway