Pity but not terribly surprising.

I'm frankly fascinated by the mindset of large PAC's around the issue of funding initiatives like this. They refuse to support an initiative or provide any money to the cause until it's sure to get on the ballot. But it can't really get on the ballot without that money to begin with.

See, I told you Seattle should form it's own State, along with Puerto Rico and DC.

I'm laughing my ass off at the image of 400,000 signatures just sitting somewhere on someone's coffee table, right next to the bowl of Lucky Charms and the Wiimote.

As someone from a family where everyone in the earlier generation had at least one psychiatrist, I so admire Dawdy's blog about his own and others' struggles to find adequate long-term mental health care. As an armchair liberal ACLU member happy we don't support every initiative no matter who's obviously prepared to burn themselves out leading it, I thank him for his constructive criticism.

Dominic, the initiative does not look dead. All along, they thought they would have to do it alone, with only non paid volunteers. It just sucks that SEIU took so long to finally decide. I for one think that changing our nation's illogical and harmful drug laws is a top priority. I will no longer be supportive of the ACLU or the SEIU until they get on board. Too many lives are lost (in this country and elsewhere) due to our insane drug laws.

In the meantime, everybody on this blog who actually cares about our country needs to get out there and start collecting signatures. I have done it and it's fun as well as easy. I collected 125 during a few hours at Folk Life.

Go to www.sensiblewashington.org to find out more info.

or fill out this form:

http://sensiblewashington.org/volunteer/

Or call the Sidney, the Capitol Hill coordinator at 206-432-2797.

Or call 425-577-4711 or 425-572-0899

@7 FT(obvious)W

Another hate crime last night, was it covered on Slog today?

Well, no more checks for the ACLU, and I'll be watching for an SEIU picket line to cross.

The SEIU has been pretty lame for a while. Much more concerned with keeping cushy public employee benefits then actually doing much progressive shit. The ACLU nationally is great, but in this state its pretty ineffectual.

@15 -- I can't imagine why the Service Employees Internation Union is more concerned with protecting benefits for its members than it is with progressive shit.

@17 If they want to be simply a protection scheme for upper middle class employees thats fine, but they are the ones that have put themselves out as politically relevant.

If liberals are supposed to love and support unions there is nothing wrong with asking for something in return.

six shooter @ 16 So why the hell did they put themselves in the picture in the first place?

Fuck political opportunists!

@8 ftw, @7 for the "Oh Noes They Might Legalize MJ and Cut My Taxes" whine.

@18, yeah, home care workers making $10 an hour are definitely "upper middle class."

I don't recall the deal where home care workers agreed to support potheads' habit in exchange for...well...whatever the potheads were going to provide.

Wow. Shot down before the east side of the state had the chance. Impressive.

Hire someone to write a real initiative that addresses this issue in a progressive and substantive manner instead of this hippy pothead bullshit that makes everyone want to stand as far away from it as possible.

@21 it's called tax revenue which is directly or indirectly the sourse of many of thier members wages.

And really what has the seiu done for homecare workers aside from holding rallies, fighting a turf war with nuhw, and then selling them out in Washington in order to unionize some other workers.

I'm disappointed in The Strangert/SLOG for jumping in the McGinn bandwagon but staying off the one for 1068.

Can I just print out the signup form and hand it out to friends, have them get 10-20 signatures and simply mail it in (naturally after gatherer themselves sign it).???

Shame on the Slog for saying every day that pot should be legal and then barely giving the people who are out there actually doing things to work on that goal no coverage at all. Would it have killed you guys to remind people to go out and sign the petition or maybe even volunteer. You know you have a huge influence with progressives and you know there are people out there working for *your cause* but give virtually nothing except one article and this negative news. What the hell?

27) I would like to respectfully disagree that we are giving "no coverage at all" to the people working to reform marijuana laws in Washington. I've lavished coverage on pot reform here--expanding medical marijuana laws, decriminalizing pot in the legislature, marches and rallies and festivals--that looked like they could be a success. The people behind this initiative have hearts of gold and are whip smart. But I haven't had much to write about this initiative (about four posts so far) because it apparently lacked the resources to succeed. We don't cover things just because they're well intentioned; they also have to be viable.

I-1068 has an extremely strong base of volunteers working their asses off every day. What the campaign lacked was funding that could have covered paid signature gatherers. We "lacked the resources to succeed" partially because influential activists like yourself, the ACLU, the SEIU and anyone who believes in what we're trying to do but doesn't bother to even sign a petition decided we were going to fail. That made a self-fulfilling prophecy. To put it another way, a slog post once in awhile reminding people to sign would have increased our viability. Too few people have faith in grassroots efforts when only petitions with large amounts of funding make it to the ballot, and that's very disappointing.

There is a weekly meeting on Capitol Hill for I-1068. It is every Wednesday at 7PM at Bill's Off Broadway, which is at the corner of Pine St and Harvard Ave.

The Capitol Hill coordinator is Sidney. Her number is 206-432-2797.

If you live in Seattle and can get to Capitol Hill give her a call. She has petitions and voter registration cards. If you are going to be 18 by the next election then you can register to vote now and sign the petition.

Instead of complaining, do something.

@30 ... but if we do something, how can we retain our street cred as whiny crybabies?

You can sign the petition at the Twilight Exit bar in the CD.

East Cherry between 25th & 26th; on the #3 bus line.

There's gotta be lots of other places in the city, too, but that's the closest place I know of.