If Only Those Meddling Voters Weren't In The Way

I got involved in politics largely because, after working in downtown San Jose for several years, I saw example after example of the astounding wastefulness of the San Jose Redevelopment Agency and blatant corruption in the San Jose City Council. I've come to the conclusion that San Jose is simply too big -- it's like a big honey jar for ambitious politicians.

According to a Mercury New poll asking the voters of San Jose if they favor spending public money to bring an (unspecified) Major League Baseball team to San Jose, the voters are strongly opposed:

S.J. voters jeer ballpark plan

Surely, this strong disapproval for the plan must influence Mayor Gonzales thinking on the subject. Well, not exactly:

"Any city where you have to tell the baseball team owner or the basketball team owner or you-name-it owner that they have to go to the voters, you're going to be bypassed,'' Gonzales said. ``The requirement that you have the voters approve any sort of public involvement in a facility is a tremendous hurdle for team owners.''

Silly voters. Don't they know that their job is too pay their taxes, shut up, and get out of the way of more visionary minds.