Slog
News & ArtsMonday, October 12, 2009
Politics You Know What Slog Needs?
Posted by Dominic Holden on Mon, Oct 12, 2009 at 1:21 PM
More discussion of Tim Eyman's Initiative 1033—that's what—because we don't have enough around here today. Here's a very straightforward video primer by the League of Women Voters of Washington on how the huckster's most recent initiative would fuck over the state. The League doesn't say "fuck over," of course, because they're a bunch of nice old ladies:
Slog: Posting about I-1033 every half-hour since 1991.
2
But this PSA is telling lies. The problems it states ARE ALREADY HAPPENING THEY ARE HERE all before one vote has been cast! These things have happened WITHOUT 1033. Is the problem 1033 (which does not exist yet as law) or bad government? Think hard now people. What has brought us to this point?
Christ people stop and think about what's being said to you. Critical thinking is so rare these days.
Christ people stop and think about what's being said to you. Critical thinking is so rare these days.
4
What we need is a remote control app that lets us squish Eyman's head with our thumb and forefingers and stick him in an envelope labelled "Return to Sender".
5
Please continue to post about I-1033 every half hour until the ballots are in on election day!!! We will only defeat this if the voters are educated.
@2-yes, you are correct, the problems are already happening due to the strained budget, and if 1033 passes, it will only get worse because it essentially says we can only spend what we spent this year, corrected for inflation and population. Which means we will ALWAYS be critically underfunded. Our F#@%ed-up tax system relies on a decent economy, which is what got us in this mess. Our revenue is property tax and sales tax based. Meaning in this economy, our assessed home values is less, meaning less property taxes=less $ to the state. Spending is also down significantly, so we're collecting less sales tax=less $ to the state. So passing 1033 will make our already screwy tax system substantially worse.
@2-yes, you are correct, the problems are already happening due to the strained budget, and if 1033 passes, it will only get worse because it essentially says we can only spend what we spent this year, corrected for inflation and population. Which means we will ALWAYS be critically underfunded. Our F#@%ed-up tax system relies on a decent economy, which is what got us in this mess. Our revenue is property tax and sales tax based. Meaning in this economy, our assessed home values is less, meaning less property taxes=less $ to the state. Spending is also down significantly, so we're collecting less sales tax=less $ to the state. So passing 1033 will make our already screwy tax system substantially worse.
6
heaven forfend we talk about the real issue, the ways our state is permitted to collect revenues.
http://wataxfairness.org/
http://wataxfairness.org/
8
tm;dl (too mellow; didn't listen)
Which is to say, it didn't get its point across while my attention was divided. Give me snappier, angrier ads that state their point more loudly!
Which is to say, it didn't get its point across while my attention was divided. Give me snappier, angrier ads that state their point more loudly!
9
Slog's doing a great job of educating people about the dangers of 1033, keep it up.
This ad in particular, though? It felt like it was promoting the OPPOSITE message. Not effective for the audience it needs to reach.
Cute stick figures, but if I wasn't already aware of how 1033 would cripple our state, as a slightly selfish upper-middle-classer my default reaction to this as would be "Well, I've got health insurance, I'm good. If I had kids I could afford to send them to private schools. Roads, well, those get built anyway, right? And police are always gonna show up in MY neighborhood. But yeah, I'd totally love a cut in my rather expensive property taxes."
The ads need to target homeowners of all tax brackets and really bring it home how much 1033 will hurt our state's economy. Focus on how the same bill devastated Colorado. Don't present it as "Sure, it will help YOU out, but think of all the poor people it will fuck over."
Trust me, that's not gonna win over the people you NEED to vote against it.
This ad in particular, though? It felt like it was promoting the OPPOSITE message. Not effective for the audience it needs to reach.
Cute stick figures, but if I wasn't already aware of how 1033 would cripple our state, as a slightly selfish upper-middle-classer my default reaction to this as would be "Well, I've got health insurance, I'm good. If I had kids I could afford to send them to private schools. Roads, well, those get built anyway, right? And police are always gonna show up in MY neighborhood. But yeah, I'd totally love a cut in my rather expensive property taxes."
The ads need to target homeowners of all tax brackets and really bring it home how much 1033 will hurt our state's economy. Focus on how the same bill devastated Colorado. Don't present it as "Sure, it will help YOU out, but think of all the poor people it will fuck over."
Trust me, that's not gonna win over the people you NEED to vote against it.
10
Voters will vote for what seems credible and unfortunately for Tim his dream scheme of freezing public spending so that sales tax dollars everyone pays can help property owners pay their property taxes is a wealth transfer system designed to mostly help the wealthy.
Eyman does not rebate any taxes back to people in proportion to what they paid but in proportion to what they own as property. Renters will still pay the same taxes but will see no rebate of taxes back under I-1033. They will also see no new services their sales tax dollars might have paid for if I-1033 wasn't there.
Tim won't tell you that a third of his rebates will go to pay commercial property taxes even though businesses have a sales tax exemption and don't pay sales taxes on goods they resell. The consumer pays them.
Last year some 54% of state revenue came from sales taxes. Senior citizens and working families that don't own property will still pay the same amount of taxes under I-1033. In a reverse Robin Hood wealth transfer scheme these taxes will help wealthy individuals and businesses pay their property taxes.
Eyman says this is more important than restoring any services lost during the recession and more important than more funding for education or home health care for seniors or more police or fire protection or more road or bridge repair or new schools or anything else.
Yes Tim knows what's best for all of us, so much so that he wants to abolish local control of not just state spending but also for all 39 counties and 281 cities. He doesn't think we're smart enough to elect people to represent us to make decisions for the public good. When he puts down, as he repeatedly does, "greedy politicians" as he calls them, he is saying the public isn't smart enough to elect its own leaders. That's pretty cynical
Initiative 1033 isn't needed. We have state and local government that works and we don't need to abolish local control of our county and city budgets, freeze public spending, and implement a wealth transfer scheme that mostly benefits wealthy property owners at the expense of the public good.
Just vote NO on I-1033 and let's get back to focusing on ways to move forward and recover from this recession. Initiative 1033 would only keep us locked in a recession economy.
More...
Eyman does not rebate any taxes back to people in proportion to what they paid but in proportion to what they own as property. Renters will still pay the same taxes but will see no rebate of taxes back under I-1033. They will also see no new services their sales tax dollars might have paid for if I-1033 wasn't there.
Tim won't tell you that a third of his rebates will go to pay commercial property taxes even though businesses have a sales tax exemption and don't pay sales taxes on goods they resell. The consumer pays them.
Last year some 54% of state revenue came from sales taxes. Senior citizens and working families that don't own property will still pay the same amount of taxes under I-1033. In a reverse Robin Hood wealth transfer scheme these taxes will help wealthy individuals and businesses pay their property taxes.
Eyman says this is more important than restoring any services lost during the recession and more important than more funding for education or home health care for seniors or more police or fire protection or more road or bridge repair or new schools or anything else.
Yes Tim knows what's best for all of us, so much so that he wants to abolish local control of not just state spending but also for all 39 counties and 281 cities. He doesn't think we're smart enough to elect people to represent us to make decisions for the public good. When he puts down, as he repeatedly does, "greedy politicians" as he calls them, he is saying the public isn't smart enough to elect its own leaders. That's pretty cynical
Initiative 1033 isn't needed. We have state and local government that works and we don't need to abolish local control of our county and city budgets, freeze public spending, and implement a wealth transfer scheme that mostly benefits wealthy property owners at the expense of the public good.
Just vote NO on I-1033 and let's get back to focusing on ways to move forward and recover from this recession. Initiative 1033 would only keep us locked in a recession economy.
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