Editorial Board Statement on New Comment Policy
Getty images The Vanguard welcomes diverse opinions in response to our published work. However, harmful commentators have…
Getty images The Vanguard welcomes diverse opinions in response to our published work. However, harmful commentators have…
In an April 2011 in-depth report The Economist catalogued the failure of California’s 100-year experience with direct democracy. And while it reserved special ire for ballot initiatives, it also questioned the way that referendums and even recalls (the two other forms of direct democracy in our state) have been implemented, concluding that the de facto “citizen legislature” has “caused chaos”.
Contrasting California’s approach to direct democracy with that of Switzerland, The Economist noted that while the Swiss model was designed to move opponents towards compromise, the California system was designed to create confrontation. The result, the report argues, is a fragmented and even contradictory legislative process, an ineffective and bound legislature, opaque budgeting and appropriations processes and a disjointed constitution. What goes unexamined in the analysis is the effect of direct democracy on local political processes.
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Note: As of January 1, commenters are required to post under their full name (as explained below). …