Just say ‘no’

The Texas Constitution is a mess — a statement that is probably as revelatory as saying rain is wet. In my view, a constitution should outline basic government principles. The Texas Constitution consists of whatever dumbass ideas legislators had at any given moment.

For that reason I have always voted against any new amendment to the Texas Constitution and will continue to do so until (1) a constitutional convention agrees on a completely new document that achieves what a constitution is supposed to accomplish, or (2) I die. I have a feeling I know which will come first.

But I actually have specific reasons to vote against these proposed amendments and since early voting on these issues have already started, it’s time to state my case.

Prop. 1: The last thing Texas government needs to be doing is taking money away from school districts. I know, legislators are promising they will reimburse the districts, some how, some way, but where have I heard those kind of empty promises before?

Prop. 2. This is worthwhile, but it simply should not be a part of a state constitution. Simple enabling legislation will accomplish the same kind of housekeeping.

Prop 3. This is nothing more than a blatant attempt to make it more difficult to prosecute crooked politicians like Attorney General Ken Paxton. It’s the legislators protecting their own and it’s shameful.

Prop. 4: Why this should be a part of a state constitution boggles the mind. The only reason I can think of is that some of our lawmakers are deeply in debt or extremely beholden to owners of professional sports teams,

Prop 5: Nothing particularly wrong with it except it is not a constitutional principle.

Prop 6: The only reason I see for this proposal is that animal rights activists have these right wing nuts who run our state government paranoid. Come on. Get serious. Does anyone really believe this groups will have any affect on hunting and fishing regulations in Texas?

Prop 7: This is another plan for the legislature to take money out of one fund in put it into another instead of simply doing the right thing which is providing for more funding. This type of legislation should be the subject of legislative debate during regular sessions and not locked into the constitution.

I know that most Texas voters don’t pay any attention to these amendments and just hit the "yes" key because they think it’s the proper thing to do, even if it isn’t the right thing to do. What I’m saying is that all these propositions will undoubtably pass by large margins. But that doesn’t mean they should.