It seems as though whenever the subject of voter initiatives and referendums (direct democracy) comes up, the knee-jerk reaction from those in power is to employ the scare term, "tyranny of the majority. That scare term is used because the two-party system and minority selfish interests are afraid of losing power over the people.

What is even more troubling is that for many years, the direct democracy scare term has been widely used in education as a propaganda measure to minimize democracy in students' minds. However, there are two kinds of tyranny at play in our society. The tyranny of the majority is seldom, if ever, present. On the other hand, in one way or another, the "tyranny of the minority" is leaning heavy on our lives all the time.

Of the eight ballot measures that will be voted on in California's November 8, 2005 special election, the most heated opposition to three of the measures comes from the California teachers union: Proposition 74, Teacher Tenure, extends from 2 to 5 years the amount of probation time that must be served before a public school teacher can be tenured. Proposition 75, Union Dues, requires public employee unions to get written approval from members before using their dues for political purposes. And Proposition 76, Live Within Our Means, caps the growth of state spending and relaxes minimum spending requirements for education implemented by Proposition 98 in 1988. Complete information on these and other propositions can be found at: http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/elections_j.htm#2005Specia

The teachers union is notorious for being aggressive, distorting the truth, and using militant tactics against previous school choice measures (school vouchers), which they defeated. And they are well known for promoting endless education bond measures for a failed education system. Fire and police unions have now joined the unseemly fight against Propositions 75 and 76, which is unfortunate for public safety unions, even shameful.

Public employees should be treated fairly by government employers, and that fair treatment should be ensured. However, public employee unions should not be allowed make assessments for political purposes, without each member's consent. More importantly, unelected public employee unions should not have undue influence over our government. "Wag the Dog" is not how our democratic republic is supposed to work. According to California Constitution Article II, Section 1, "All political power in inherent in the people." November 8th is the time to use it.