National Initiative

[Virgil0211]

It's been a while since I've made a new random nonsense topic, eh? Well, here's one that's not quite so random and a bit less nonsensical.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_initiative

I read up on it when I saw Mike Gravel in a new reason.tv video. It's an interesting concept, but I dislike it for the same reasons I dislike even congress' power right now- It doesn't seem to quite guard against the possibility of mob rule. I mean, sure, it says that the laws passed under such an initiative would have to be subject to the courts, and thus bound by the constitution, but we all see how well that worked with congress.

I would actually propose something else- the National Initiative in Reverse.

Instead of giving average citizens the ability to propose and make new laws outside of congress by obtaining a 50% majority in whatever jurisdiction the law is proposed for, let's give them the ability to repeal or void any laws or regulations for which they can get 35% of registered voters in the jurisdiction in question to vote against it. It would prevent average citizens from enforcing mob rule and voting themselves largess from the treasury, and it would serve a similar role as jury nullification was supposed to back at the founding of the country. It'd be one more way to stop congress from using force unnecessarily. Hopefully...

[MrBogosity]

I like it!

[Virgil0211]

I like it!

Lol. I thought you might. I doubt it'd get much support, unless it was advertised and promoted in just the right way, but marketing isn't my specialty.

And instead of one single event where you have to vote 'no' before it becomes codified forever, you have an open ballot system, where people can vote to repeal the law at any time during the law's history. Your 'no' vote only expires if you do, i.e. you die. Until that point, it will stand for the life of the law or your own, whichever ends first. The second enough counter-votes are collected that it equals 35% of the population in question, the law is repealed the next day. I'd love to see the look on Nancy Pelosi's face if such an amendment were added. I imagine it would be like a child molesting priest that just had his nuts sliced off, a mixture of pain, shock, and helplessness.