Redefining "Majority"

ma·jor·i·ty   [muh-jawr-i-tee, -jor-] noun, plural -ties.

1.

the greater part or number; the number larger than half the total ( opposed to 
minority): the majority of the population.

2.

a number of voters or votes, jurors, or others in agreement, constituting more than 
half of the total number.

A local school district recently announced that they are preparing two separate budget proposals, one that stays within the confines of the 2% tax cap imposed by state law, and a second that reflects the true financial needs of the school district but will require a 60% majority vote in order to enact.  That's right - in case you didn't know it, New York State now requires a 60% majority vote for any municipality to adopt a budget that would result in more than a 2% tax increase.

Before you get upset with me, let me firmly state that I am not advocating bloated budgets or high taxes.  I am advocating letting the majority of the voting constituency to make the decision they think is best.  Allowing 40% of the voters to decide what should happen runs counter to everything I was ever taught about the American democratic process, and strikes me as pure nonsense.


This is not the only place where this happens; the US Senate also comes to mind.  In the Senate, a 40% minority can sustain a filibuster and block legislation that is supported by the other 60%.  And don't think filibusters work like you saw in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.  The minority doesn't need to have someone stand on the floor of the Senate until he/she passes out, they just have to vote and then go about their normal business.


I also liken the concept of term limits to this "tyranny of the minority."  If the majority of US voters (or at least electors) had wanted to see Bill Clinton or George W. Bush serve a third term, that should have been their choice.  I figure term limits came about because one political party couldn't find an opponent good enough to be a reasonable alternative to the incumbent.  In my mind, we've always had term limits and always will - all we need do is vote out the person we don't like.


So the New York State tax cap is, to me, just one more way to limit our voices as voters.  I'd be delighted if it were stricken from the law, along with the Senate filibuster rule and term limit laws.

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On a Personal Note ...

I may not be able to blog regularly for the next week or so.  We're packing up our beloved Cavaliers and heading for a dog show in Virginia.  I hope you miss me.